Patent ID: 8029709

Claim:
A method of encapsulating a liquid material, the method comprising the steps of: providing a mixture comprising a non-polar solution containing at least one hydrophobic monomer and a non-polar solvent, and a polar solution containing at least one hydrophilic monomer and a polar solvent, wherein the non-polar solution and the polar solution are not miscible in each other; homogenizing the mixture to form an emulsion comprising droplets of non-polar solution in the polar solution or droplets of polar solution in the non-polar solution; and polymerizing the hydrophobic monomer and the hydrophilic monomer with an initiator that initiates an interfacial free radical alternating copolymerization process, forming a polymer shell around the droplets, wherein the polymer shell around the droplets is the reaction product of the hydrophobic monomer alternately copolymerizing with the hydrophilic monomer; wherein at least one of the hydrophobic monomer and the hydrophilic monomer is unsaturated; and wherein the hydrophilic monomer is selected from the group consisting of divinyl ethers, divinyl sulfides, divinyl amines, divinyl esters, divinylarylenes, diallylarylenes, conjugated dienes, nonconjugated dienes, cyclodienes, vinyl and allyl esters of unsaturated mono- and dicarboxylic acids, and mixtures thereof; and wherein the hydrophobic monomer is selected from the group consisting of dibutyl maleate, maleic anhydride and its α,β-substituted derivatives, imides and N-substituted imides of unsaturated dicarboxylic acids, unsaturated mono- and dicarboxylic acids, and tetrahalogen-substituted ethylenes.