EXPANDABLE BEADS BASED ON A POLYMER OF A VINYLAROMATIC COMPOUND CONTAINING BLOWING AGENT AND PLASTICIZER

摘要

The invention relates to expandable beads based on a polymer of a vinylaromatic compound having a weight average molecular weight (Mw) in the range of 180,000 to 500,000 and containing a blowing agent and a plasticizer in an amount of 0.1 up to 4 wt.% (as calculated on the total weight of the beads), wherein the plasticizer is an oligomer of styrene and/or alpha-methylstyrene having a number-average molecular weight (Mn) in the range of 200 to 2,000; a process for preparing these expandable beads, and articles of expanded beads, obtainable by expanding and fusing these beads.