Polyacrylamide (short for PAM) is a linear polymer and a flocculant that can neutralize suspended substances through electricity, bridge adsorption, and act as a flocculation. It can effectively reduce the frictional resistance of fluid, which can be reduced by 50–80% by adding a trace amount of PAM in water.
It has a thickening effect under neutral and acidic conditions. When the pH value is above 10, PAM is easily hydrolyzed. When it is in a semi-reticular structure, the thickening effect will be more obvious.
According to its structure, it can be divided into non-ionic, anionic, and cationic types. Since the structural units of polyacrylamide contain amide groups, it is easy to form hydrogen bonds, giving it good water solubility and high chemical activity.
It is easy to obtain various modified products with branched or network structures through grafting or cross-linking. It has been widely used in oil mining, wastewater treatment, mineral processing, viscosity increasing, etc., and is known as an auxiliary for all industries.
