| Abstract: | Divalent group 14 metal species, a germylene(la) and a stannylene(lb), behaved as a comonomer(reductant monomer) in the copolymerization with p-benzoquinone derivatives(oxidant monomer)(“oxidation-reduction copolymerization”) and as an initiator for anionic monomers. The copolymerization took place without initiator at a lower temperature to give an alternating copolymer. N-phenyl-p-quinoneimine also behaved as a reactive oxidant monomer toward la and lb. These species have been shown to induce the polymerization of anionically polymerizable monomers such as methyl methacrylate, methacrylonitrile, and 4-vinylpyridine. Based on the mechanistic examination of the polymerization, a new alternating copolymerization between la and 2-cyclohexene-l-one has been developed to produce a copolymer having a metal-enolate structure, which involves the oxidation-reduction process during the copolymerization. |
