METHOD FOR PRODUCING WATER-ABSORBING POLYMER PARTICLES

摘要

The invention relates to a method for producing water-absorbing polymer particles, having the following steps: a) a polymerization step in which an aqueous monomer solution comprising at least one ethylenically unsaturated acid group-carrying monomer (M) that can be at least partly neutralized and at least one crosslinking agent is polymerized, an aqueous polymer gel being obtained; b) a granulation step in which the aqueous polymer gel with a solid content of 35 to 70 wt.% and a temperature between 75 and 125 °C is pressed out of a high-pressures zone into a low-pressure zone through a perforated plate and a granulate is obtained, the pressure difference between the high-pressure zone and the low-pressure zone equaling 4 to less than 14 bar and the opening ratio of the perforation plate equaling 30 to 80%; c) a drying step in which the granulate is dried to a moisture content of less than 10 wt.%; d) a grinding step and a classifying step, wherein water-absorbing polymer particles are obtained; and e) a surface post-crosslinking step for the water-absorbing polymer particles. The water-absorbing polymer particles have a high swelling rate and a high retention capacity while having an advantageous ratio of the permeability of the swollen gel bed SFC to the centrifuge retention capacity CRC.