Polymerization of mono- and α,ω-dicarbanionic polystyryl-barium—II. Effect of added lithium salt in THF

The propagation rate of polystyryl-barium was studied in THF at 20°, in the presence of small amounts of lithium chloride. These kinetic results furnish a new method for the determination of triple ion formation in both mono- and α,ω-dicarbanionic polystyryl-barium. The constant of triple ion association of monocarbanionic (PS^?)₂Ba, K_T, was found to be 3.7 × 10⁵ l M^?1, close to the value calculated from published data.

The triple ion association constant of α,ω-dicarbanionic PS^2?Ba²⁺, K_DT, is about 1.2 × 10⁶ l M^?1.

Taking into account the cyclic structure of α,ω-dicarbanionic PS^2?Ba²⁺ and a statistical factor 3 between K_T and K_DT, it is concluded that mono- and dicarbanionic polystyryl-barium have similar abilities for triple ion formation. Nevertheless, stronger associations are observed for dicarbanionic oligomers with a degree of polymerization lower than 5–7.