Abstract: | Radical polymerizations of methyl methacrylate (MMA), styrene (St), and vinyl acetate (VAc) were carried out in the presence of a novel phenyl acrylate derivative bearing a hindered phenol moiety (HPA). It has been clarified that HPA acts as a retarder and inhibitor for the polymerizations of MMA and VAc, respectively, and that in the polymerization of St it behaves as a monomer to give a copolymer. These additive effects were interpreted in terms of intramolecular transfer of the phenolic hydrogen in competition with propagation of the HPA radical to monomers. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. |