Preparation and Evaluation of a Polyether-Based Polycarboxylate as a Kind of Inhibitor for Water Systems

Scale could be inhibited by adding polymer inhibitors. In this article, water-soluble polymer, AA–TPEO, was synthesized successfully, which was characterized by FT-IR and 1 H NMR. Its stability was studied and its molecular weight was measured using gel permeation chromatography. Through the static scale-inhibition method, the effect of several parameters on the inhibition efficiency of CaCO 3, such as composition and dose, molecular weight, pH, temperature, and ion concentration of solution, was investigated. It was found that when the molar ratio was 1:2 (TPEO/AA), the inhibition efficiency could reach 89%, better than common inhibitors. The appropriate molecular weight (Mw) was 17158 g/mol. The supersaturation had been studied, which had a great influence on scale-inhibition efficiency. Meanwhile, the effect of the polymer’s composition and dose on the inhibition efficiency toward Ca 3 (PO 4 ) 2 was investigated. The best molar ratio was 3:1 (TPEO/AA). At last, the polymer’s effectiveness on scale crystal was assessed using XRD.