The inverse microemulsion polymerization of watersoluble acrylamide monomers within near-critical and supercritical alkane continuous phase provides a potential route for production of polymers with novel physical properties and at high reaction rates. In order to define conditions for a model polymerization process, the phase behavior of a nonionic surfactant/ acrylamide/water system in near-and supercritical mixtures of ethane and propane was examined. Results show that in mixtures of ethane and propane the continuous-phase density determines the phase behavior. Results also show that acrylamide acts as a co-surfactant with C 16 E 2 /C 12 E 4 (Brij) surfactant blend used for these experiments. Surprisingly, increasing the total dispersed-phase volume fraction lowers the density (and consequently pressure) required to form a stable microemulsion. Dynamic light scattering results suggest the presence of strong micelle-micelle interactions, or clustering, the extent of which increases rapidly as the phase boundary is approached. Initial polymerization results indicate possible dependencies of both the polymerization rate and the molecular weight on continuous-phase density and/or the degree of micelle-micelle clustering, suggesting that the monomer may not be as accessible to a growing chain as in a classical emulsion polymerization.Emulsion polymerization is an important commercial process because, in contrast to the same free-radical polymerization performed in the bulk, molecular weight and reaction rate can be increased simultaneously (1-3). Furthermore, the lower viscosity of an emulsion system compared with that of the corresponding bulk process provides better control over heat transfer. Commercial emulsion processes usually use a surfactant/water/monomer system