Studies on polymers containing functional groups. VI. Kinetics of the polymerization and copolymerization behaviors of o-hydroxystyrene

Some kinetic studies were made of the homopolymerization of o-hydroxystyrene and its copolymerization behavior with styrene and methyl methacrylate in tetrahydrofuran using azobisisobutyronitrile as initiator were done. The rate of polymerization experimentally obtained is given by R_p = K[M][I]^0.72. Accordingly, it is likely that the growing chain radicals are terminated not only by mutual termination but also by a chain-transfer mechanism, the latter occupying a considerable portion. The latter is mostly attributed to the transfer to monomer, i.e., C_m for o-hydroxystyrene was 1.3 × 10^?2. Some transfer mechanisms were assumed, although it is difficult to elucidate the mechanism in detail, owing to its complexity. Effects of solvent on the rate of polymerization were examined, dioxane, methyl ethyl ketone, ethanol, and tetrahydrofuran being used. However, no differences were found among the solvents. The apparent activation energy of polymerization was found to be 21.5 kcal./mole. Monomer reactivity ratios and Alfrey-Price Q–e values for o-hydroxystyrene were determined. The Q–e values (Q = 1.41, e = ?1.13) are rather similar to those of p-methoxystyrene. Thus, the e value for o-hydroxystyrene is more negative than that for styrene.     

Cationic polymerization behavior of hydroxystyrenes

Solution polymerizations of o-, m- and p-hydroxystyrene with boron trifluoride etherate were investigated. The results of infrared and ultraviolet spectroscopic investigations of the polymers thus obtained indicate that p-hydroxystyrene polymer consisted mainly of the structure formed through the normal vinyl polymerization mechanism, whereas o- and m-hydroxystyrene polymers contained considerable portions of the structures due to the reaction of the vinyl group with the phenol nucleus. The rate of polymerization and the intrinsic viscosity of the polymer decreased in the order p-hydroxystyrene ? o-hydroxystyrene > m-hydroxystyrene. It was of interest that on the cationic polymerization only p-hydroxystyrene gave polymer of high molecular weight. Plausible polymerization mechanisms were considered. Solid-state polymerization of p-hydroxystyrene at solid carbon dioxide temperature with the use of boron trifluoride etherate was also investigated. Appreciable polymerization occurred only at fairly high catalyst concentrations.     

Radical polymerization behavior of hydroxystyrenes

Homopolymerizations of m- and p-hydroxystyrene and their copolymerizations with styrene and methyl methacrylate by use of azobisisobutyronitrile as initiator were investigated, and the results were compared with those obtained previously o-hydroxystyrene. Intrinsic viscosities of m- and p-hydroxystyrene polymers obtained by bulk and solution polymerizations were ca. 2 to 3 times larger than those of o-hydroxystyrene polymers obtained by the similar conditions. The structures of the polymers thus produced were investigated by infrared and ultraviolet spectroscopy. These studies suggested that all of the homopolymers consisted mainly of structures of normal vinyl type polymer. R_p was proportional to [I]^0.52 for m-hydroxystyrene and to [I]^0.50 for p-hydroxystyrene, for o-hydroxystyrene R_p was proportional to [I]^0.72. A reasonable chain transfer mechanism for these monomers was postulated. The apparent activation energies of polymerization for m- and p-hydroxystyrene were found to be 20.1, and 18.0 kcal/mole, respectively, compared to the value of 21.5 kcal/mole for o-hydroxystyrene. Monomer reactivity ratios and Q ? e values for m- and p-hydroxystyrene were determined, and the results were also compared with the case of o-hydroxystyrene. Copolymerization generally gave a polymer with relatively high intrinsic viscosity, even in the case of o-hydroxystyrene.     

A morphological analogue of japanese lacquer. Grafting of p-hydroxystyrene onto pullulan by ammonium persulfate initiation in dimethylsulfoxide

Pullulan-g-poly(p-acetoxystyrene) ( I ) was prepared using ammonium persulfate (APS) as an initiator in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) solution. I was deacetylated by hydrazine hydrate to yield pullulan-g-poly(p-hydroxystyrene) ( II ). The degree of polymerization of the grafted poly(p-hydroxystyrene) chain ( III ) was 15–20. Despite the effective grafting (%), this method caused the degradation of pullulan. The number of branch polymer chains per pullulan molecule were evaluated to be 0.9 to 2.5 from number average molecular weights of the permethylated II and III . The glass transition temperature of II was higher than that of III , indicating that the polar hydroxyl groups of pullulan in the graft polymer caused an increase in the rigidity of the grafted polymer chains. Pullulan-g-poly(o-hydroxystyrene) and pullulan-g-poly(MMA) were also readily prepared by this method.     

Polymerization of phenylacetylenes. VI. Chain-transfer reaction in the polymerizations of phenylacetylene and styrene by WCl6

Chain-transfer reactions to alkylbenzenes were investigated in the polymerizations of phenylacetylene and styrene by WCl₆ in benzene at 30°C. In the polymerization of phenylacetylene, alkylbenzenes did not work as chain-transfer agents, and further ethyl iodide was not a terminating agent. These findings suggest that the polymerization of phenylacetylene by WCl₆ differs from the conventional cationic or anionic mechanisms. On the other hand, the ability of alkylbenzenes as chain-transfer agents in the polymerization of styrene by WCl₆ increased in the following order: toluene < p-xylene < m-xylene < o-xylene. This order is similar to that in the polymerization by SnCl₄. These results indicate that the polymerization of styrene by WCl₆ proceeds by a conventional cationic mechanism.     

Polymerization of 1,3‐dienes with functional groups. III. Free‐radical polymerization of N,N‐diethyl‐2‐methylene‐3‐butenamide

Free‐radical homo‐ and copolymerization behavior of N,N‐diethyl‐2‐methylene‐3‐butenamide (DEA) was investigated. When the monomer was heated in bulk at 60 °C for 25 h without initiator, rubbery, solid gel was formed by the thermal polymerization. No such reaction was observed when the polymerization was carried out in 2 mol/L of benzene solution with with 1 mol % of azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as an initiator. The polymerization rate (R_p) equation was R_p ∝ [DEA]^1.1[AIBN]^0.51, and the overall activation energy of polymerization was calculated 84.1 kJ/mol. The microstructure of the resulting polymer was exclusively a 1,4‐structure where both 1,4‐E and 1,4‐Z structures were included. From the product analysis of the telomerization with tert‐butylmercaptan as a telogen, the modes of monomer addition were estimated to be both 1,4‐ and 4,1‐addition. The copolymerizations of this monomer with styrene and/or chloroprene as comonomers were also carried out in benzene solution at 60 °C. In the copolymerization with styrene, the monomer reactivity ratios obtained were r₁ = 5.83 and r₂ = 0.05, and the Q and e values were Q = 8.4 and e = 0.33, respectively. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 999–1007, 2004     

Polymerization of aromatic aldehydes. IV. Cationic copolymerization of phthalaldehyde isomers and styrene

Copolymerizations of three phthalaldehyde isomers (M₂) with styrene (M₁) were carried out in methylene chloride or in toluene with BF₃OEt₂ catalyst. The monomer reactivity ratios were r₁ = 0.77, r₂ = 0 for the meta isomer and r₁ = 0.60, r₂ = 0 for the para isomer. The second aldehyde group of both isomers did not participate in polymerization and acted simply as the electron-withdrawing group, thus reducing the cationic reactivity of these monomers. Copolymerization behaviors of the ortho isomer (o-PhA) were quite different between 0°C and ?78°C. At ?78°C, o-PhA preferentially polymerized to yield “living” cyclopolymers, until an equilibrium concentration of o-PhA monomer was reached. Then, styrene propagated from the living terminal rather slowly. The block structure of the copolymer was confirmed by the chemical and spectroscopic means. In the copolymerization at 0°C, the o-PhA unit in copolymer consisted both of cyclized and uncyclized units. This copolymer seemed to contain short o-PhA sequences. The variation of the o-PhA-St copolymer structure with the polymerization temperature was explained on the basis of whether the polymerization was carried out above or below the ceiling temperature (?43°C) of the homopolymerization of o-PhA.     

Radical polymerization of ortho-(1,3-dioxolan-2-yl)phenyl ethyl fumarate involving intramolecular hydrogen abstraction and ring opening of cyclic acetal

The polymerization of o-(1,3-dioxolan-2-yl)phenyl ethyl fumarate (DOPEF) initiated with dimethyl 2,2′-azobisiso-butyrate (MAIB) was studied kinetically in benzene. The polymerization rate (R_p) at 60°C was given by R_p = k [MAIB]^0.76 [DOPEF]^0.71. The overall activation energy of polymerization was calculated to be 98.3 kJ/mol. The number-average molecular weight of resulting poly(DOPEF) was in the range of 1000–3100. ¹H- and ¹³C-NMR spectra of resulting polymers revealed that the radical polymerization of DOPEF proceeds in a complicated manner involving vinyl addition, intramolecular hydrogen abstraction, and further ring opening of the cyclic acetal at higher temperatures. From the copolymerization of DOPEF (M₁) and styrene (St) (M₂) at 60°C, the monomer reactivity ratios were obtained to be r₁ = 0.02 and r₂ = 0.20, the values of which are similar to those of the copolymerization of ethyl o-formylphenyl fumarate and St. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 36: 563–572, 1998     

Nanopatterned Superlattices in Self‐Assembled C2‐Symmetric Oligodimethylsiloxane‐Based Benzene‐1,3,5‐Tricarboxamides

The synthesis of C₃‐ and C₂‐symmetric benzene‐1,3,5‐tricarboxamides (BTAs) containing well‐defined oligodimethylsiloxane (oDMS) and/or alkyl side chains has been carried out. The influence of the bulkiness of the oDMS chains in the aggregation behavior of dilute solutions of the oDMS‐BTAs in methylcyclohexane was studied by temperature‐dependent UV spectroscopy. The formation of hierarchically self‐assembled aggregates was observed at different BTA concentrations, the tendency of aggregation increases by shortening or removing oDMS chains. Chiral BTAs were investigated with circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, showing a stronger tendency to aggregate than the achiral ones. Majority rules experiments show a linear behavior consistent with the existence of a high mismatch penalty energy. The most efficient oDMS‐BTAs organogelators have the ability to form stable organogels at 5 mg mL^?1 (0.75 wt %) in hexane. Solid‐state characterization techniques indicate the formation of an intermolecular threefold hydrogen bonding between adjacent molecules forming thermotropic liquid crystals, exhibiting a hexagonal columnar organization from room temperature to above 150 °C. A decrease of the clearing temperatures was observed when increasing the number and length of the oligodimethylsiloxane chains. In addition to the three‐fold hydrogen bonding that leads to columnar liquid crystalline phase, segregation between the oDMS and aliphatic chains takes place in the BTA functionalized with two alkyl and one oDMS chain leading to a superlattice within the hexagonal structure with potential applications in lithography.     

Polymerization of 1,3‐dienes with functional groups. II. Free‐radical polymerization of N‐(2‐methylene‐3‐butenoyl)piperidine

The free‐radical homopolymerization and copolymerization behavior of N‐(2‐methylene‐3‐butenoyl)piperidine was investigated. When the monomer was heated in bulk at 60 °C for 25 h without an initiator, about 30% of the monomer was consumed by the thermal polymerization and the Diels–Alder reaction. No such side reaction was observed when the polymerization was carried out in a benzene solution with 1 mol % 2,2′‐azobisisobutylonitrile (AIBN) as an initiator. The polymerization rate equation was found to be R_p ∝ [AIBN]^0.507[M]^1.04, and the overall activation energy of polymerization was calculated to be 89.5 kJ/mol. The microstructure of the resulting polymer was exclusively a 1,4‐structure that included both 1,4‐E and 1,4‐Z configurations. The copolymerizations of this monomer with styrene and/or chloroprene as comonomers were carried out in benzene solutions at 60 °C with AIBN as an initiator. In the copolymerization with styrene, the monomer reactivity ratios were r₁ = 6.10 and r₂ = 0.03, and the Q and e values were calculated to be 10.8 and 0.45, respectively. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 1545–1552, 2003     

Controlled radical polymerization of 1,3‐butadiene. II. Initiation by hydrogen peroxide and reversible termination by TEMPO

The radical polymerization of 1,3‐butadiene initiated by hydrogen peroxide and controlled by TEMPO is presented. Various parameters (e.g., the temperature and the [TEMPO]_o/[H₂O₂]_o initial molar ratio, γ_o), were studied to optimize the reaction. It was observed that the higher the temperature, the higher the yield, with optimal yields noted for γ_o = 0.10 with high molecular weights and broad polydispersity indexes. In addition, the kinetics of radical polymerization showed a decrease (by one order of magnitude) of the macroradical concentration all along the reaction. The ln [butadiene]/[butadiene]_o increased relative to time and behaved linearly after 90 min. Further, the concentration of free TEMPO was ≈1000 times lower than the initial concentration, in good agreement with the decoloring of the medium. Thus a quasi‐living behavior of butadiene was noted from this system. Finally, the hydrolysis of these oligomers, either in the presence of zinc or thermally by means of a thin‐layer evaporator under vacuum allowed the production of telechelic hydroxy polybutadienes, the second technique enabling the obtaining of higher molecular weights by coupling and the recovery of TEMPO. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 3293–3302, 2000     

Synthesis and asymmetric polymerization of a series of methyl‐substituted triphenylmethyl methacrylate

Five novel ortho‐, meta‐, and para‐methyl‐substituted triphenylmethyl methacrylate monomers, such as o‐tolyldiphenylmethyl methacrylate (o‐MeTrMA), di‐o‐tolylphenylmethyl methacrylate (o‐Me₂TrMA), tris‐o‐tolylmethyl methacrylate (o‐Me₃TrMA), tris‐m‐tolylmethyl methacrylate (m‐Me₃TrMA), and tris‐p‐tolylmethyl methacrylate (p‐Me₃TrMA) have been synthesized. The methanolysis rates of these monomers were measured in CDCl₃‐CD₃OD (1:1, v/v) by ¹H NMR spectroscopy at 30 °C. It was found that the order of the methanolysis rates would be TrMA<o‐MeTrMA<o‐Me₂TrMA<o‐Me₃TrMA<m‐Me₃TrMA except p‐Me₃TrMA, which exhibited very good stability to methanolysis. The asymmetric polymerization of these monomers was investigated by chiral anionic complexes as initiators. The results showed that the ability to form a helical chain was effected not only by the types of chiral complex initiators, but also by the position and number of methyl‐substituted groups at the benzene rings of TrMA. The order of the ability of polymerization was o‐MeTrMA >o‐Me₂TrMA>o‐Me₃TrMA and m‐Me₃TrMA> p‐Me₃TrMA>o‐Me₃TrMA. These differences would be attributed to the different sizes and “propeller” steric structures of the bulky side groups. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 430–436, 2001     

Polymerization of surface-active monomers. II. Polymerization of quarternary alkyl salts of dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate with a different alkyl chain length

The cationic monomers (C_NBr), obtained by quarternization of dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate with n-alkyl bromide containing varying carbon number (N = 4, 8, 12, 14, and 16) were polymerized with radical initiators in water and various organic solvents. The degree of polymerization of the resulting polymers was determined by GPC measurements on poly(methyl methacrylate) samples derived from them. The rate of polymerization of the micelle-forming monomers (N = 8, 12, 14, and 16) in water increases with increasing a chain length of alkyl group, whereas it is little dependent on N in isotropic solution in dimethylformamide. The data on the degree of polymerization for the polymers of C₄Br, C₈Br, and C₁₂Br show that the polymerization of C₁₂Br with azo initiators in water and benzene gives polymers with a very high degree of polymerization. The results obtained here suggest that highly developed or relatively rigid, aggregated structures of monomers in solution are responsible for the formation of the polymers with a very high degree of polymerization, in addition to an enhanced rate of polymerization. Also considered are the relation of the molecular weight of poly(C₁₂Br) to the viscosity data in chloroform and methanol.     

Phase-Transfer-Agent-Aided Free Radical Polymerization of Methyl Methacrylate-A Kinetic Study

The kinetics of phase-transfer-agent-aided free radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate was investigated by using K₂S₂O₈ as the initiator and cetyltrimethyl ammonium chloride (Arquad) as the phase transfer agent. The rate of polymerization was found to be proportional to [M]^1.23[K₂S₂O₈]^0.8 [Arquad]^0.25 and almost independent of the volume of water (V _w)/volume of organic solvent (V _o) (benzene) ratio for V _w/V _o < 0.33. A reaction mechanism is proposed.     

Organometallic polymers. XXV. Preparation of polyvinylferrocene

The synthetic details of solution polymerization in benzene and bulk polymerization of vinylferrocene are reported. In benzene solutions, with azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator, small yields of low-polydispersity low molecular weight (M?_n ? 5000) polyvinylferrocene is obtained. However, high yields can be obtained by continuous or multiple AIBN addition. Higher molecular weight polymers and binodal polymers can be obtained as the monomer concentration is increased. In bulk polymerizations, yields of 80% can be obtained. The molecular weight increases as temperature decreases from 80 to 60°C in bulk polymerizations, and an increasing amount of insoluble polymer results. The soluble portion is often binodal, the higher molecular weight node consisting of an increasingly branched structure. Lower molecular weight polymer was readily fractionated into narrow fractions from benzene–methanol systems, but higher molecular weight polymer proved impossible to fractionate into narrow fractions due to branching.     

Polymers containing fluorinated ketone groups. IV. Syntheses and characterization of new fluorinated ketone-containing polymer-substituted polystyrenes

A series of new fluorinated ketone-containing polymers, poly(p-vinyltrifluoroacetophenone) (PVTFA), poly(p-vinyldifluoroacetophenone) (PVDFA), poly(p-vinylphenylheptafluoropropyl ketone) (PVHFK), and poly(o-and p-vinylbenzyltrifluoromethyl ketone) (PVTFK), were prepared by the free radical polymerization of the corresponding monomers. The monomers, p-vinyltrifluoroacetophenone (VTFA), p-vinyldifluoroacetophenone (VDFA), p-vinylphenylheptafluoropropyl ketone (VHFK), and o-and p-vinylbenzyltrifluoromethyl ketone (VTFK), were prepared by the reaction of Grignard reagent with the corresponding perfluoroacid or its lithium salt. Polymerization was a competitive side reaction during monomer preparation. Reduced side reaction and higher yields of monomer (based on the Grignard reagent) were obtained from the lithium salt of the perfluoroacid, compared with the perfluoroacid itself. These new substituted polystyrenes which contain fluorinated ketone functionality were characterized by their ability to (1) react with active hydrogen compounds such as alcohols or water; (2) have high glass transition temperatures and decreased solubility in nonpolar solvents (e. g., benzene) compared with polystyrene; and (3) be converted into other functional groups such as alcohols or acids by treatment with the appropriate chemical reagents. Beads of a styrene (ST) terpolymer with 2% divinylbenzene (DVB), which contained the CF₃COCH₂ function, were prepared by suspension polymerization of ST, VTFK, and DVB. The terpolymer, which contains 15-17% mole (or 0.70–0.71 meg/g) of CF₃COCH₂ swollen with a solvent, were shown to chemisorb alcohols.     

Effect of solution components on the termination mechanism in acrylamide microemulsion polymerizations

A study of the effect of the various solution components on the kinetics of the polymerization of acrylamide in water/oil (w/o) microemulsions has been performed. For the polymerizations with toluene as the continuous phase, both the rate of polymerization, R_p, and the molecular weight of the polyacrylamide were found to be first order in monomer concentration. Furthermore, for the low temperatures (10°C) involved in these experiments, nondegradative chain transfer to monomer appears to be insignificant. When the continuous-phase solvent was changed, an exponential dependence, X, of R_p on the incident light intensity in the order of toluene (X = 1.06) > heptane (X = 0.73) > benzene (X = 0.55) was found. Thus, the monoradical termination found in the toluene microemulsions is likely due to degradative transfer to toluene, forming a stable benzyl radical, while polymerization in benzene (no labile hydrogen atoms) leads to biradical termination     

Investigation of Suzuki–Miyaura catalyst‐transfer polycondensation of AB‐type fluorene monomer using coordination‐saturated aryl Pd(II) halide complexes as initiators

Novel triarylamine‐based coordination‐saturated aryl Pd(II) halide complexes ligated by PEt₃, PCy₃, and P(o‐tol)₃ were successfully synthesized by direct oxidative addition of aryl halide to the corresponding Pd(0) precursors. Suzuki–Miyaura coupling polymerization of 2‐(7‐halide‐9,9‐dioctylfluoren‐2‐yl)?1,3,2‐dioxaborinane with these Pd(II) complexes as initiators was investigated for the synthesis of poly(fluorene)s with triarylamine end group. Pd(II) complexes with PCy₃ or P(o‐tol)₃ exhibited catalytic activity and realized the catalyst‐transfer polycondensation at 75 °C and room temperature, respectively, while the polymerization using Pd(II) catalyst ligated by PEt₃ did not proceed, which indicated that the bulky phosphine ligands could facilitate the reductive elimination and further promote the polymerization. In addition, the dimeric Pd(II) complex with P(o‐tol)₃ can convert into monomeric Pd(II) intermediate with an open coordination site, which had a higher activity. The end groups of the afforded polyfluorene were analyzed by matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization time‐of‐flight (MALDI‐TOF) mass spectrometry, in which the Ar/H end groups are indicative of the catalyst‐transfer polymerization. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1457–1463     

Photopolymerization of cyclohexene oxide by use of o-nitrobenzyl triphenylsilyl ether/aluminum compound catalyst. Dependence of catalyst activity on the structure of the silyl ether

o-Nitrobenzyl triphenylsilyl ehther/aluminum compound has been previously shown by the authors to act as catalyst in the photopolymerization of epoxides. The dependence of the structure of the silyl ether on the catalyst activity was examined. There were two steps in the photopolymerization. The first step (“Step 1”) is photodecomposition of the silyl ether to silanol. The second step (“Step 2”) is the initiation of polymerization by silanol and the aluminum compound. The introduction of an electron withdrawing group, Cl, CF₃, on the benzene ring bonded to Si made the quantum yield of Step 1 low, however, the rate of Step 2 was increased. The low quantum yield of Step 1 was explained in terms of the rate of electron transfer that is controlled by the relative electron density between the CH₂ and NO₂ in the o-nitrobenzyl group. The acceleration of Step 2 was explained in terms of an increase in silanol acidity that was promoted by the introduction of an electron withdrawing group. The overall rate of the photopolymerizatiol depends to a greater degree on the rate of Step 2 than on that of Step 1.     

Copolymerization of N-Vinylcarbazole and Vinyl Acetate via Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain Transfer (RAFT) Polymerization

Summary: The reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) random copolymerization of N-vinylcarbazole (NVC) and vinyl acetate (VAc) was carried out using s-benzyl-o-ethyl dithiocarbonate (BED) as the chain transfer agent and 2,2′-azoisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as the initiator in 1,4-dioxane solution at 70 °C. The polymerization showed the characteristics of ‘living’ free radical polymerization behaviors: first order kinetics, linear relationships between molecular weight and conversion, and narrow polydispersity of the polymers. The reactivity ratios of NVC and VAc were calculated via the Kelen–Tudos (KT) and non-linear error in variable (EVM) methods and showed as r₁ = 1.938 ± 0.191, r₂ = 0.116 ± 0.106. The thermal behavior of the copolymers with different content of NVC and VAc was investigated by DSC and TGA. The results showed that the introduction of a VAc segment into copolymer significantly reduced the T_g of the NVC homopolymers. FT-IR spectra, fluorescence spectra, and cyclic voltammetric behavior of these copolymers were also measured and compared with those of NVC homopolymers. The copolymers showed similar oxidative behavior to the NVC homopolymer. However, there was only one reductive potential peak shown for the copolymers at about 0.058 V.