Intramolecular charge transfer complexes. VIII. Poly[N-(2-hydroxyethyl) carbazolyl acrylate-co-2,4-dinitrophenyl methacrylate]

Radical copolymerization of N-(2-hydroxyethyl) carbazolyl acrylate (HECA, M₁) with 2,4-dinitrophenyl methacrylate (DNPM, M₂) can be described by a simple terminal mechanism having the relative reactivities r₁ = 0.14, r₂ = 1.10 (at 60°C); 0.28, 0.96 (80°C); and 0.41, 0.79 (100°C), respectively. The dependence of the reactivity ratio values on copolymerization temperature, analyzed by Arrhenius equation, takes place mainly through the frequency factor. The copolymers obtained are intramolecular charge transfer complexes. The intramolecular interaction is evidenced by the shift of the aromatic protons from the DNPM structural unit in the copolymers' ¹H-NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectra. This shift depends on sequence distribution and chain conformation, but is not affected by the copolymerization temperature.