Abstract
In this work, the effect of biodegradable polymers i.e., carboxymethylinulin, CMI; lignosulfonate, LS, and synthetic polymers i.e., poly(acrylic acid), PAA; poly(methacrylic acid), PMAA, on the crystal growth kinetics of strontium sulfate (SrSO4) was studied at 250C. The spontaneous crystallization method was used to investigate the crystallization kinetics of SrSO4. The experimental results show that SrSO4 crystal growth process depends upon CMI concentration and its degree of carboxylation. Comparison with the effects of PAA and PMAA inhibitors, which were also included in our experiments, show that PAA is a more effective inhibitor than CMI-15, CMI-20, CMI-25, PMAA, and LS. The fit of the adsorption model to the experimental data supports a mechanism of inhibition through molecular adsorption of polymers on the surface of growing crystals.