Polymerization of Methyl Methacrylate with Bis(Cyclopentadienyl)Titanium Dichloride in a Water-Methanol Mixture: Formation of Tetrahydrofuran-Insoluble Polymer

Abstract

Methyl methacrylate (MMA) was found to be effectively polymerized with bis(cyclopentadienyl)titanium dichloride (CP₂TiCl₂) in a water-methanol mixture (1:1, v/v). The polymerization proceeded heterogeneously because the resulting poly(MMA) was insoluble in the system. The rate (R _p) of the heterogenous polymerization was apparently expressed by R _p = k[Cp₂TiCl₂]²[MMA]^2˙5 (at 40°C). The resulting poly(MMA) was observed to consist of tetrahydrofuran (THF)-soluble and insoluble parts. In contrast with the usual radical poly(MMA), the THF-insoluble part was soluble in benzene, toluene, and chloroform but insoluble in polar solvents such as ethyl acetate, acetone, acetonitrile, dimethylformamide, and dimethylsulfoxide. The polymerization was found to be profoundly accelerated by irradiation with a fluorescent room lamp (15 W). The results of copolymerization of MMA and acrylonitrile indicated that the present polymerization proceeds through a radical mechanism.     

Vinyl Polymerization. CLXXXV. Polymerization of Methyl Methacrylate Initiated with Benzoic Anhydride and Dimethylaniline N-Oxide. Effects of Solvent and the Substituent of the Initiator

Studies on the rate of the reaction of substituted dimethylaniline N-oxide (DMAO) with substituted benzoic anhydride (Bz₂O) and the rate of polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) with their systems were made. The solvent effects on the rate of the reaction of DMAO with Bz₂O and on the polymerization of MMA with the system were also studied.     

Polymerization of Vinyl Monomers with Binary Initiator System of N-Chlorosuccinimide and Lewis Acids

The polymerization of vinyl monomers with a binary system composed of N-chlorosuccinimide (NCS) and some Lewis acids was investigated by means of kinetic and spectral determinations. It was found that the NCS-ZnCl₂ system was the most effective as an initiator of radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate, and this polymerization was initiated by a radical produced via the reaction of NCS and ZnCl₂, and terminated bimolecularly. By applying a spin trapping technique to the reaction of NCS with ZnCl₂, it was shown that the initiating radical was N-succinimidyl radical which was obtained through a homolysis at the N-Cl bond.     

Two-dimensional intrinsic ferromagnetism at nitride-boride interfaces

We predict theoretically novel two-dimensional interface ferromagnetism at AlN/MgB(2)(0001) using first-principles calculations, where the interface is employed as an ordered structure of spin sites instead of point defects. Although N dangling bonds are apparently saturated, interfacial states exhibit spin polarization. Hund's coupling of the two N p(∥) orbitals as well as low density of states at the Fermi energy contribute to strong band ferromagnetism. Furthermore, first-principles electron transport calculations demonstrate that this interfacial spin polarization is responsible for quantum spin transport. The magnetization can be controlled by applied gate bias voltages.     

Hydrogen‐bond‐assisted stereocontrol in the radical polymerization of N‐isopropylacrylamide with secondary alkyl phosphate: The effect of the bulkiness of the ester group

The radical polymerization of N‐isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) in toluene at low temperatures was investigated in the presence of triisopropyl phosphate (TiPP). The addition of TiPP induced a syndiotactic specificity that was enhanced by the polymerization temperature being lowered, whereas atactic polymers were obtained in the absence of TiPP, regardless of the temperature. Syndiotactic‐rich poly(NIPAAm) with a racemo dyad content of 65% was obtained at ?60 °C with a fourfold amount of TiPP, but almost atactic poly(NIPAAm)s were obtained by the temperature being lowered to ?80 °C. This result contrasted with the result in the presence of primary alkyl phosphates, such as tri‐n‐propyl phosphate: the stereospecificity varied from syndiotactic to isotactic as the polymerization temperature was lowered. NMR analysis at ?80 °C revealed that TiPP predominantly formed a 1:1 complex with NIPAAm, although primary alkyl phosphates preferentially formed a 1:2 complex with NIPAAm. Thus, it was concluded that a slight increase in the bulkiness of the added phosphates influenced the stoichiometry of the NIPAAm–phosphate complex at lower temperatures, and consequently a drastic change in the effect on the stereospecificity of NIPAAm polymerization was observed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 3899–3908, 2005     

Dependence of the Schottky barrier on the work function at metal/SiON/SiC(0001) interfaces identified by first-principles calculations

We report investigations based on density functional theory that clarify the dependence of the Schottky barrier height (SBH) on the work function of metals at metal/SiON interfaces formed on the 6H-SiC(0001) surface. We have found that the density of atoms in the Al layer affects neither its work function nor the SBH formed when the layer contacts with the SiON surface. More importantly, the SBH for the B overlayer is lower compared with that for the Al layer, reflecting a difference in the work function of the layers. The present result clearly indicates that Fermi-level pinning does not occur for SiON on SiC(0001), which means that the SBH is controllable for metal/SiON/SiC systems by changing the work function of metals.     

Long-lived polymer radicals. IV. Reactions of poly(N-methylacrylamide) and poly(N-methylmethacrylamide) radicals with binary mixtures of vinyl monomers

N-methylacrylamide (NMAAm) and N-methylmethacrylamide (NMMAm) were polymerized to give polymer microspheres containing living propagating radicals. The microsphere polymer radicals were allowed to react with some binary mixtures of vinyl monomers including alternating copolymerization combinations. The reaction processes were investigated by ESR spectroscopy. In the poly(NMMAm) radical/methyl methacrylate (MMA)/styrene (St) system, the propagating radical from MMA was mainly observed at the higher MMA concentration, while polySt radical prevailed at the lower MMA concentration. In the poly(NMMAm) radical/α-methylstyrene (α-MeSt)/diethyl fumarate system, the α-MeSt radical was exclusively observed, while the maleic anhydride (MAn) radical was predominantly observed in the α-MeSt/MAn system. In the MAn/diphenylethylene system, the propagating radicals from both monomers were observed at comparable concentrations. The poly(NMAAm) microsphere radical behaved differently in the reaction with the MMA/St mixture. The poly(NMAAm) microsphere was found to incorporate preferentially St, leading to formation of the St radical. The St preference was enhanced in the St/cyclohexyl methacrylate (CHMA) system. These results were in agreement with those of block copolymerization via the reaction of poly(NMAAm) radical with the MMA/St or CHMA/St mixture, where the compositions of the resulting polymers were analyzed by pyrolysis gas chromatography.     

Electron transfer mechanisms in surface dynamical processes

Some topics concerning on the dynamical electron transfer processes between adparticle and surface are discussed based on recent theoretical studies. They include the band effect on the electron transfer probability, the change from the diabatic to adiabatic behavior seen in the field induced desorption (FID), and the effect of the couplings with the medium degrees of freedom on the electron transfer process. It is elucidated how the competition of the energy parameters, i.e., the band width, the inverse of the scattering time and the interaction energy leads to different features of the electron transfer. Natural crossover of the FID behavior from the diabatic to the adiabatic limit is clarified by the generalized kinematic equation based on the quantum model of the electron transfer. Enhancement of the diabatic behavior by the coupling with the heat bath or sorrounding medium is concluded with the stochastic trajectory method and the time-developing operator method.     

13C NMR and electron spin resonance analyses of the radical polymerization of diisopropyl itaconate

Radical polymerizations of dialkyl itaconates were performed in benzene at 50 °C. The ¹³C NMR spectra of the obtained polymers indicated that intramolecular chain‐transfer reaction had taken place more frequently in the polymerizations of itaconates with bulkier ester groups as follows: isopropyl (i‐Pr) > n‐butyl (n‐Bu) ≈ ethyl (Et) > methyl (Me). In addition to the ¹³C NMR analysis, an electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis was conducted for polymerizations of diisopropyl itaconate, the ESR spectra of which consisted of two kinds of resonances due to the radicals with different conformations. It was assumed that the difference in conformation was attributable to the stereosequences near the propagating chain end because the relative intensity ratios of the resonances varied with the magnitude of the intramolecular chain‐transfer reaction, which was accompanied by a decrease in the syndiotacticity of the obtained poly(diisopropyl itaconate)s. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 4513–4522, 2002     

Effect of through-space electron transfer on infrared spectrum of amorphous selenium

In this paper we present theoretical analyses on an infrared (IR) spectrum of amorphous selenium. The system is described by a 216-atom-chain model, and a set of molecular-dynamics simulations is performed to generate vitreous structures and vibrational modes. To describe an electronic structure of the system we employ a complete neglect of differential overlap model parametrized by ab initio cluster calculations. An IR intensity is evaluated with the Berry-phase formula for an electronic polarization. The effect of the through-space electron transfer on the IR spectrum is studied by artificially changing the magnitude of matrix elements associated with the electron transfer between nonbonded atoms in the chain. We find that the through-space electron transfer leads to (i) the enhancement of the bending IR peak at 135 cm(-1) and (ii) the appearance of a new low-frequency peak around 50 cm(-1), thus resulting in a good agreement with the experiment. The mechanism is discussed by a simple dipole model.