Donor-Acceptor Complexes in Copolymerization. XXXVI. Alternating Diene-Dienophile Copolymers. 4. Copolymerization of Furan and 2-Methylfuran with Maleic Anhydride

Abstract

The copolymerization of furan and 2-methylfuran with maleic anhydride in the presence of a radical catalyst yields equimolar, alternating copolymers in which the furan units have a 2,5-linkage (NMR and IR). The copolymerization appears to have a floor temperature of about 40°C. The furan-maleic anhydride Diels-Alder adduct polymerizes in solution in the presence of a radical catalyst at temperatures above 60°C to yield the identical copolymer as is obtained from the monomers. The adduct undergoes a retrograde reaction above 60°C to regenerate the monomers which then copolymerize through excitation of the ground state comonomer charge transfer complex.     

Donor-Acceptor Complexes in Copolymerization. LXIII. Alternating Diene-Dienophile Copolymers. 15. Copolymerization of Cyclopentadiene and the Isomeric N-Phenyl-5-norbornene-2,3-dlcarboximides with N-Phenylmaleimide

Abstract

The copolymerization of cyclopentadiene (CPD) and N-phenyl-maleimide (NPMI) at 80–195°C, in the presence of a radical catalyst having a short half-life at the reaction temperature and less than 25% solvent, yields a 1:2 CPD-NPMI copolymer (DP 2–3) which is identical (IR, NMR) to the endo 1:1 copolymer (DP 18) obtained under the same conditions from the copolymerization of the endo CPD-NPMI Diels-Alder adduct and NPMI. The exo CPD-NPMI adduct copolymerizes with NPMI under the same conditions to yield an exo 1:1 copolymer (DP 8). Under the same conditions the homopolymerization of the endo and exo CPD-NPMI adducts is effected in the melt at temperatures up to 260°C and in solution at 120–155°C. The homopolymers (DP 3–7) prepared below 210°C retain the configuration of the adducts while the homopolymers prepared at 260°C from either isomer contain both endo and exo configurations due to isomerization. The participation of excited species is suggested by the requirement for high-speed decomposition of radical catalysts to effect homopolymerization and copolymerizations.     

Copolymerization of furan with maleic anhydride initiated by thioglycolic acid

Copolymerization of furan (F) with maleic anhydride (MAH) initiated by thioglycolic acid (TGA) was studied in various solvents and temperatures in the presence of atmospheric oxygen. Copolymer between F and MAH was readily obtained by using thiol compounds as initiators. The atmospheric oxygen catalyses the copolymerization reaction. The rate of copolymerization is proportional to the concentration [TGA]^0.55 at low concentrations (< 1.0 mol/L), at higher concentrations rates decrease gradually. The copolymerization rate increases with increase in copolymerization temperature and varies with the total monomer concentration as ([F] + [MAH])^1.9. The overall energy of activation as calculated from the Arrhenius plot has been found to be 6.4 Kcal/mol within the temperature range of 25–50°C.     

Controlled free-radical copolymerization of maleic anhydride and divinyl ether in the presence of reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer agents

The free-radical alternating cyclocopolymerization of maleic anhydride and divinyl ether is studied at 60–80°C in the presence of benzyl dithiobenzoate and dibenzyl trithiocarbonate as reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer agents. It is shown that the structure of the repeating unit of the cyclocopolymer prepared in the presence of a reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer agent coincides with the structure of the repeating unit of the copolymer synthesized under the conditions of conventional free-radical cyclocopolymerization. When the cyclocopolymer is used as a reversible addition-fragmentation chaintransfer agent, a successive increase in the molecular mass of the copolymer with conversion and formation of the block copolymer in the polymerization of styrene are unambiguous evidence that the copolymerization proceeds according to the pseudoliving radical mechanism.     

Donor-Acceptor Complexes in Copolymerization. XXVI. Effect of Solvent,Temperature, and Complexing Agent on the Polymerization of Comonomer Charge Transfer Complexes

The copolymerization of styrene with methyl methacrylate (S/MMA = 4/1) or acrylonitrile (S/AN = 1/1) in the presence of ethylaluminum sesquichloride (EASC) yields 1/1 copolymer in toluene or chlorobenzene. In chloroform the S-MMA-EASC polymerization yields 60/40 copolymer while the S-AN-EASC polymerization yields 1/1 copolymer. In the presence of EASC, styrene-α-chloroacrylonitrile yields 1/1 copolymer (DMF or DMSO), S-AN yields 1/1 copolymer (DMSO) or radical copolymer (DMF), S-MMA yields radical copolymer (DMF or DMSO), α-methylstyrene-AN yields radical copolymer (DMSO) or traces of copolymer (DMF), and α-MS-methacrylo-nitrile yields traces of copolymer (DMSO) or no copolymer (DMF). When zinc chloride is used as complexing agent in DMF or DMSO, none of the monomer pairs undergoes polymerization. However, radical catalyzed polymerization of isoprene-AN-ZnCl₂ in DMF yields 1/1 alternating copolymer. The copolymerization of S/MMA in the presence of EASC yields 1/1 alternating copolymer up to 100°C, while the copolymerization of S/AN deviates from 1/1 alternating copolymer above 50°C. The copolymerization of S/MMA deviates from 1/1 copolymer at MMA/EASC mole ratios above 20 while the copolymerization of S/AN deviates from 1/1 copolymer at MMA/EASC ratios above 50.     

Copolymerization of Vinyl Chloride and Sulfur Dioxide. II. Copolymerization Rates and Copolymer Compositions

The rate of copolymerization of vinyl chloride (VC) with sulfur dioxide and the composition of the poly (vinyl chloride sulfone) formed have been measured for comonomer liquid mixtures with X_VC = 0.1 to 1.0 and over the temperature range -95 to +46°C.

Polymerization was initiated by γ-irradiation (-95 to +46°C) and with the t-butyl hydroperoxide/SO₂/methanol redox system (-95 to -18°C). The copolymerization rates and copolymer compositions indicated two distinct temperature regions, with a change in mechanism around 0°C. For radiation initiation below 0°C, the rate versus comonomer composition relationship showed a maximum at an x_VC value which increased with increasing temperature. Above 0°C, the rate decreased with increasing temperature and was greatly retarded by SO₂. No high molecular weight copolymer or VC homopolymer was formed on irradiation of comonomer mixtures above ～55°C.     

Copolymerization of Vinyl Chloride and Sulfur Dioxide. III. Evaluation of the Copolymerization Mechanism

The mechanism of copolymerization of vinyl chloride (V) with sulfur dioxide (S) to form a variable composition polysulfone with average V:S molar ratio n ≥ 1 is examined. The copolymerization deviates from Lewis-Mayo behavior above -78°C. Alternative models for propagation involving (1) penultimate and pen-penultimate unit effects, (2) complex participation, and (3) depropagation are considered quantitatively by comparison of calculated and experimental copolymer/comonomer composition relationships and comonomer sequence distributions. Our theoretical modeling of the copolymerization shows that it is difficult to discriminate convincingly between alternative mechanisms. The penultimate and pen-penultimate effect models can account for the copolymer compositions, but not for the dilution effects which were observed provided the diluent is truly inert. The complex participation model can account for experimental behavior from -78 to -18°C by the assumption of addition of SV complexes, but it becomes rapidly less satisfactory at higher temperatures. Depropagation is the only model which can account for the compositions and dilution effects above 0°C. Progressive depropagation, with increasing temperature, of chains ending in the triad sequences ～SVS?, ～VVS?, and ～VSV? can explain the observed behavior over the entire comonomer composition and temperature range, but involvement of comonomer complexes in the propagation reactions is highly likely below 0°C.     

Ethylene/1-Hexene Copolymerization and Synthesis of LLDPE/Nanocarbon Composite through In Situ Polymerization

Copolymerization of ethylene/1-hexene using a modified ZN-type catalyst was carried out in the presence of triethylaluminium as cocatalyst. The optimum copolymerization activity was obtained at Al: Ti = 357: 1, 60°C and the comonomer concentration of 0.6 mol/L in the range studied. Copolymer/nanocarbon (including multiwalled carbon nanotube, graphene nanoplatelet) composites were prepared via in-situ polymerization. The copolymerization activity decreased by addition of the nanocarbon into the reactor. The presence of graphene nanoplatelet in nanocomposites reduced the melting temperature and increased heat of fusion, crystallinity and density of the obtained polymer. In the copolymer/carbon nanotube nanocomposites, decreasing of melting temperature was observed in comparison to pure copolymer, whereas, heat of fusion, crystallinity and density increased. The results of TGA analysis showed that the addition of nanocarbons has improved the thermal stability of obtained copolymers.     

Donor–acceptor complexes in copolymerization. LVIII. Alternating diene–dienophile copolymers. 12. Structure of furan–maleic anhydride copolymers prepared from the monomers and the diels-Alder adduct

The copolymerization of furan with maleic anhydride in the presence of a perester or azobisiso-butyronitrile at 50 or 70°C yields an unsaturated equimolar, alternating copolymer in which the furan units have 3,4 unsaturation and 2,5 linkages. The furan–maleic anhydride Diels-Alder adduct undergoes retrograde dissociation in solution at 70°C and, in the presence of radical catalysts, yields the same unsaturated alternating copolymer as is obtained from the monomers. The adduct undergoes homopolymerization in the presence of a rapidly decomposing perester at 50°C to yield a saturated polymer having a rearranged structure containing 3-oxabicyclo[2.2.1]heptane-5,6-dicarboxylic anhydride repeating units with 2,7 linkages.     

Copolymerization of 2-Hydroxypropyl Methacrylate with Alkyl Met hacrylates

2-Hydroxypropyl methacrylate (2-HPMA) has been copolym-erized with ethyl methacrylate (EMA), n-butyl methacrylate (BMA), and 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate (EHMA) in bulk at 60°C using benzoyl peroxide as initiator. The copolymer composition has been determined from the hydroxyl content. The reactivity ratios have been calculated by the Yezrielev, Brokhina, and Raskin method. For copolymerization of 2-HPMA (M₁) with EMA (M₂), the reactivity ratios are r₁ = 1.807 ± 0.032 and r₂ = 0.245 ± 0.021; with BMA (M₂) they are n = 2.378 ± 0.001 and r₂ = 0.19 ± 0.01; and with EHMA the values are r₁ = 4.370 ± 0.048 and r₂ = 0.103 ± 0.006. Since reactivity ratios are the measure of distribution of monomer units in copolymer chain, the values obtained are compared and discussed. This enables us to choose a suitable copolymer for synthesizing thermoset acrylic polymers, which are obtained from cross-linking of hydroxy functional groups of HPMA units, for specific end-uses.     

Donor-Acceptor Complexes in Copolymerization. III. Conjugated Diene-Acrylonitrile Copolymerization in the Presence of Metal Halides

The copolymerization of isoprene or butadiene with acrylonitrile in the presence of zinc chloride or ethylaluminum sesquichloride, in the presence or absence of a free radical catalyst, at 30-70°C yields an equimolar, diene-acrylonitrile alternating copolymer containing more than 90% trans-1,4 unsaturation, irrespective of monomer charge. The copolymer results from the homopolymerization of a diene-acrylonitrile…metal halide transoid charge transfer complex. When ZnCl₂ is the electron-accepting metal halide and the polymerization is carried out at temperatures of 50°C and higher or to high conversions, the equimolar copolymer is accompanied by a high acrylonitrile polymer, and in the presence of a radical catalyst, by a normal radical copolymer. In the presence of the organoaluminum halide and in the absence of a radical catalyst, the alternating copolymer is the only product, irrespective of monomer charge. However, in the presence of a radical catalyst and at high acrylonitrile monomer charges, e.g., D/AN = 10/90, the alternating copolymer is accompanied by a normal radical copolymer. The formation of equimolar, alternating copolymer at all monomer ratios and in the absence or presence of a radical catalyst indicates that the (D-AN…MX) charge transfer complex readily undergoes homopolymerization and does not copolymerize with free diene or acrylonitrile or with the AN-AN…MX complex.     

Copolymerization of 2-Hydtoxypropyl Methacrylate with Alkyl Methacrylates

2-Hydroxypropyl methacrylate (2 HPMA) has been copolym-erized with ethyl methacrylate (EMA), n-butyl methacrylate (BMA), and 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate (EHMA) in bulk at 60°C using benzoyl peroxide as initiator. The copolymer composition has been determined from the hydroxyl content. The reactivity ratios have been calculated by the YBR method. For copolymerization of 2-HPMA (M₁) with EMA (M₂), the reactivity ratios are: r₁=1.807 ± 0.032, r₂=0.245 ± 0.021; with BMA (M₂) they are r₁=2.378 ± 0.001, r₂=0.19 ± 0.01; and with EHMA the values are r₁=4.370 ± 0.048, r₂=0.103 ± 0.006. Since the reactivity ratios are the measure of distribution of monomer units in a copolymer chain, the values obtained are compared and discussed. This enables us to choose a suitable copolymer for synthesizing thermoset acrylic polymers, which are obtained from cross-linking of hydroxy functional groups of HPMA units, for specific end uses.     

Studies of the polymerization of diallyl compounds. XXVIII. Copolymerization of monoallyl phthalate with allyl benzoate and diallyl phthalate

The bulk copolymerizations of monoallyl phthalate (MAP) with allyl benzoate (ABz) and diallyl phthalate (DAP) were conducted in the presence of benzoyl peroxide as an initiator at 70°C; copolymers containing allyl alcohol unit were obtained. The copolymer composition was reasonably interpreted in terms of polymerization kinetics, including the partial elimination of phthalic anhydride (PhA) from the MAP growing chain end in its propagation reaction with another monomer. Kinetics of the copolymerization of DAP with MAP were also discussed in detail, and the gel point was additionally evaluated. DAP–MAP copolymer was homogeneously reacted with zinc acetate to produce the polymer gel carrying ionic crosslinkages.     

Copolymerization of styrene with maleic anhydride initiated by thiol compounds

Copolymerization of styrene (ST) with maleic anhydride (MAH) initiated by thiol compound was investigated under various conditions. The kinetics of copolymerization of ST with MAH initiated by p-toluenethiol (pTT) was studied in dioxane in the temperature range of 25–60°C, and the rates (R_p) of copolymerization and activation energy were determined. R_p was found to depend on [pTT],^0.6 ([ST] + [MAH])^2.7. The overall energy of activation was 10.8 kcal/mol in the temperature range of 25–60°C. A mechanism involving the formation of a complex between MAH and pTT the decomposition of which yields the initial radical is suggested.     

Polymerization of allyl esters of unsaturated acids. VII. Copolymerization of methyl allyl maleate and fumarate with styrene

Radical copolymerizations of methyl allyl maleate (MAM) and methyl allyl fumarate (MAF) with styrene (St) are carried out in bulk using AIBN as an initiator at 60°C, and their copolymerization behaviors are compared in detail. The different rate features are observed with each other; thus in the MAF-St copolymerization the rate was quite enhanced and, also, the maximum rate was found at the molar ratio of 1:1 in the monomer feed, whereas no maximum phenomenon of the rate was apparent for the MAM—St copolymerization. The copolymerizability of MAF with St was quite high, whereas that of MAM was very poor. The cyclization of MAM or MAF was hindered by the highly reactive St monomer. These results are discussed in terms of the formation of the charge—transfer complex between MAF and St and, furthermore, the cyclocopolymerization kinetics involving the 17 elementary reactions as the propagation reactions.     

Latent reactive polymers containing isocyanate moiety that show extreme stability under aerobic atmosphere

This article deals with the latent reactive polymers having isocyanate moiety obtained from the radical copolymerization of 2‐propenyl isocyanate ( 2PI ) with styrene, 2PI with methyl methacrylate ( MMA ), and 2‐methacryloyloxyethyl isocyanate ( MOI ) with styrene. The radical copolymerization was carried out in benzene (5.00 M by total monomer) in the presence of AIBN (3.00 mol % of total monomer) at 60 °C for 24 h. The isocyanate moiety in each copolymer was stable at room temperature for more than 6 months under aerobic atmosphere, because no change of the infrared absorption based on isocyanate group of the resulting copolymer at around 2250 cm^?1 was observed. Isocyanate moiety of obtained copolymer (poly( 2PI ‐co‐ St )) reacted with excess diamines or diols at 80 °C in THF solution to afford the crosslinked polymer quantitatively. These results could demonstrate that isocyanate moiety in the copolymers showed thermal and reactive latency. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2448–2453, 2006     

Copolymerization of styrene with vinyltriethoxysilane and vinyltriacetoxysilane

Styrene was copolymerized in bulk with vinyltriethoxysilane at 80°C and vinyltriacetoxysilane at 60, 80, and 100°C with the use of benzoyl peroxide as an initiator at low conversions. Copolymer composition was determined from the silicon content and reactivity ratios were calculated by the conventional scheme of copolymerization. The low r₁ value (styrene) in the styrene-vinyltriacetoxysilane system (St–VTAS) as compared to styrene-vinyltriethoxysilane (St–VTES) copolymerization may be attributed to higher reactivity of VTAS towards the polystyryl radical. Further, in the St–VTAS system, r₁ tends to decrease with increasing polymerization temperature. The influence of silicon comonomer on properties of the copolymers (intrinsic viscosity, solubility, dielectric and thermal behavior) was studied.     

Copolymerization of ethylene and 1-butene using a Cr—silica catalyst in a slurry reactor

A novel slurry reactor was used to investigate the copolymerization behavior of ethylene and 1-butene in the presence of 1 wt % Cr on Davison silica (Phillips-type) catalyst over the temperature range of 0–50°C, space velocity of about 0.0051 [m³ (STP)]/(g of catalyst) h, and a fixed ethylene to 1-butene feed mole ratio of 95 : 5. The effect of varying the ethylene to 1-butene feed ratios, 100 : 0, 96.5 : 3.5, 95 : 5, 93 : 7, 90 : 10, 80 : 20, and 0 : 100 mol/mol at 50°C was also studied. The addition of 1-butene to ethylene typically increased both copolymerization rates and yields relative to ethylene homopolymerization with the same catalyst, reaching a maximum yield for an ethylene: 1-butene feed ratio of 95 : 5 at 50°C. The incorporation of 1-butene within the copolymer in all cases was less than 5 mol %. The average activation energy for the apparent reaction rate constant, k_a, based on total comonomer mole fraction in the slurry liquid for the ethylene to 1-butene feed mole ratio of 95 : 5 in the temperature range of 50–30°C measured 54.2 kJ/mol. The behavior for temperatures between 30 to 0°C differed with an activation energy of 98.2 kJ/mol; thus, some diffusion limitation likely influences the copolymerization rates at temperatures above 30°C. A kinetics analysis of the experimental data at 50°C for different ethylene to 1-butene feed ratios gave the values of the reactivity ratios, r₁ = 27.3 ± 3.6 and r₂ ≅ 0, for ethylene and 1-butene, respectively. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Copolymerization of methyl acrylate and vinyl acetate catalyzed by ethylaluminium chlorides

The copolymerization of vinyl acetate with methyl acrylate in the presence of Et₂AlCl, Et_1.5AlCl_1.5, and Et₂AlCl-benzoyl peroxide systems has been investigated. The influence of monomer ratios and organoaluminium compound concentration on the copolymer yield and composition have been determined and discussed. The monomer sequences distribution has been studied by means of ¹³C-NMR. It was found that organoaluminium compounds in the studied systems catalyze not only the alternating copolymerization, but also the homopropagation of both monomers. An alternating copolymer was obtained in reactions carried out at ?78°C, when a large excess of vinyl acetate was used in the monomer feed.     

Alternating copolymerization of ethylene oxide and sulfur dioxide

Copolymerization of ethylene oxide (EO) and sulfur dioxide (SO₂) was conducted by using a variety of amines as catalyst. Aromatic tertiary amines such as quinoline and pyridine were found to show the best catalytic property of the various amines, and copolymerization was carried out in the temperature range between 0 and 80°C with the use of quinoline. The copolymerization rate was approximately first-order in quinoline, EO, and also SO₂. The copolymer, was always composed of the two monomers: 1:1 ratio, independent of the initial concentration of the monomers. The copolymer obtained was a transparent viscous material which decomposed at 218°C to afford a considerable amount of ethylene sulfite. Spectroscopic analysis of the copolymer combined with the results of elemental analysis indicates the copolymer to have the structure The polymerizability of ethylene sulfite, which might be considered an intermediate compound in the copolymerization, was also examined at 60°C for 4 hr in the presence of quinoline, and it was found that ethylene sulfite could not be polymerized under these conditions.