Self‐seeded crystallization and its potential for molecular weight characterization. II. Experiments on narrow fractions

The effect upon seeding behavior of adding well characterized fractions has been studied, so as to assess the technique as a measure of small amounts of high molecular weight. The material available to us restricted the study to fractions with comparatively low average molecular weights. Self‐seeding is shown to be an extremely sensitive measure of high molecular weight tails. Knowledge of the molecular weights concerned enabled estimates to be made of the weight of molecules involved in seeding. Instability of seeds has been observed, and is explained in terms of a particular amorphous crystalline “equilibrium” within the seeds.