Vinyl polymerization. 416. Polymerization of vinyl monomer initiated by polyethyleneglycol

The polymerization of vinyl monomer initiated by polyethyleneglycol (PEG) in aqueous solution was carried out at 85°C with shaking. Acrylonitrile (AN), methyl methacrylate (MMA), and methacrylic acid were polymerized by PEG–300 (M?_n = 300), whereas styrene was not. The effects of the amounts of monomer and PEG, the molecular weight of PEG, and the hydrophobic group at the end of PEG molecule on the polymerization were studied. The selectivity of vinyl monomer and the effect of the hydrophobic group are discussed according to “the concept of hard and soft hydrophobic areas and monomers.” The kinetics of the polymerization was investigated. The overall activation energy in the polymerization of AN was estimated as 37.9 kJ mol^?1. The polymerization was effected by a radical mechanism.     

Physical properties of sol-gel derived poly(Vinylidene Fluoride)/Silica hybrid

Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) was incorporated in situ with silica by a sol-gel process involving tetraethoxysilane. The mechanical properties of these in situ hybrids were compared with those of PVDF composites mechanically blended with 14-nm diameter fumed silica particles. The ultimate strength of the in situ hybrids was higher than that of the blend composites, since fumed silica particles aggregate and act as mechanically weak points. The thermal analysis, dynamic viscoelastic properties, and dielectric properties were compared. The β-relaxation of PVDF caused by the glass transition was observed at around −40°C in the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and the mechanical tan δ curves and at −30°C in the dielectric loss factor (ϵ”) curve. The αc-relaxation due to the molecular motion in the crystalline phase occurred at 61°C in DSC curve, at 100°C in the tan δ curve, and at 80°C in the ϵ” curve. The peak positions of these relaxations did not change, but the peak intensities were decreased with the increase in silica content for both the in situ hybrids and blend composites. The activation energies for PVDF were calculated as 136 kJ/mol for the β-relaxation and 96 kJ/mol for the αc-relaxation. The result that these activation energies did not depend on silica content may indicate the weak interaction between PVDF and silica.