Polymers chain-growth

Chain-growth polymers grow by reactions occurring at an active site on the monomer or existing chain. Polymerization occurs via free radicals, anions, or 

Polyesters (Dacron) Polycarbonates (Lexan ) Polyurethane (Lycra ) 

Chain with short branches LDPE soft 

What types of monomers would be best suited for polymerization via a cationic process  

Answer Monomers that stabilize the positive charge. The most stable carbocations are tertiary and the least stable are primary, so a branched monomer or a monomer that contains stabilizing groups or one that can form stabilizing resonance structures is best suited to cationic polymerization. 

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In the next group of chapters we shall discuss condensation or step-growth polymers and polymerizations in Chap. 5, addition or chain-growth polymers and polymerizations in Chap. 6, and copolymers and stereoregular polymers in Chap. 7. It should not be inferred from this that these are the only classes of polymers and polymerization reactions. Topics such as ring-opening polymeri-... 

It is apparent from these reactions how chain transfer lowers the molecular weight of a chain-growth polymer. The effect of chain transfer on the rate of polymerization depends on the rate at which the new radicals reinitiate polymerization ... 

Chain-Growth Associative Thickeners. Preparation of hydrophobically modified, water-soluble polymer in aqueous media by a chain-growth mechanism presents a unique challenge in that the hydrophobically modified monomers are surface active and form micelles (50). Although the initiation and propagation occurs primarily in the aqueous phase, when the propagating radical enters the micelle the hydrophobically modified monomers then polymerize in blocks. In addition, the hydrophobically modified monomer possesses a different reactivity ratio (42) than the unmodified monomer, and the composition of the polymer chain therefore varies considerably with conversion (57). The most extensively studied monomer of this class has been acrylamide, but there have been others such as the modification of PVAlc. Pyridine (58) was one of the first chain-growth polymers to be hydrophobically modified. This modification is a post-polymerization alkylation reaction and produces a random distribution of hydrophobic units. 

The alkene and diene polymers discussed in Sections 7.10 and 14.6 are called chain-growth polymers because they are produced by chain reactions. An initiator adds to a C=C bond to give a reactive intermediate, which adds to a second alkene molecule to produce a new1 intermediate, which adds to a third molecule, and so on. By contrast, polyamides and polyesters are called step-growth polymers because each bond in the polymer is formed independently of the others. A large number of different step-growth polymers have been made some of the more important ones are shown in Table 21.2. 

Synthetic polymers are classified by their method of synthesis as either chain-growth or step-growth. The categories ate somewhat imprecise but nevertheless provide a useful distinction. Chain-growth polymers are produced by chain-reaction polymerization in which an initiator adds to a carbon-carbon double bond of an unsaturated substrate (a vinyl monomer) to yield a reactive inter-... 

Synthetic polymers can be classified as either chain-growth polymen or step-growth polymers. Chain-growth polymers are prepared by chain-reaction polymerization of vinyl monomers in the presence of a radical, an anion, or a cation initiator. Radical polymerization is sometimes used, but alkenes such as 2-methylpropene that have electron-donating substituents on the double bond polymerize easily by a cationic route through carbocation intermediates. Similarly, monomers such as methyl -cyanoacrylate that have electron-withdrawing substituents on the double bond polymerize by an anionic, conjugate addition pathway. 

Atactic (Section 31.2) A chain-growth polymer in which the substituents are randomly oriented along the backbone. 

Chain-growth polymer (Section 31.1) A polymer w hose bonds are produced by chain reactions. Polyethylene and other alkene polymers are examples. 

Vinyl monomer (Sections 7.10, 31.1) A substituted alkene monomer used to make chain-growth polymers. 

Addition polymers, which are also known as chain growth polymers, make up the bulk of polymers that we encounter in everyday life. This class includes polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyvinyl chloride. Addition polymers are created by the sequential addition of monomers to an active site, as shown schematically in Fig. 1.7 for polyethylene. In this example, an unpaired electron, which forms the active site at the growing end of the chain, attacks the double bond of an adjacent ethylene monomer. The ethylene unit is added to the end of the chain and a free radical is regenerated. Under the right conditions, chain extension will proceed via hundreds of such steps until the supply of monomers is exhausted, the free radical is transferred to another chain, or the active site is quenched. The products of addition polymerization can have a wide range of molecular weights, the distribution of which depends on the relative rates of chain grcnvth, chain transfer, and chain termination. 

Chain growth polymers, which are often referred to as addition polymers, form via chain addition reactions. Figure 2.2 presents a generic chain addition mechanism. Chain addition occurs when the active site of a monomer or polymer chain reacts with an adjacent monomer molecule, which is added to the end of the chain and generates a new active site. The active site is the reactive end of a monomer or polymer that participates in the polymerization reaction. 

Chain growth polymers comprise most of the commodity polymers found in consumer products. Common examples include the polyethylene used in trash can liners, the polyvinyl chloride used as wire insulation, and the polypropylene used in food storage containers. ... 

Chain Growth Polymers Step Growth Polymers... 

We rarely use bulk polymerization methods to produce chain growth polymers. Bulk polymerization finds little use for these materials, because the process generates relatively few... 

Figure 2.18 Crosslink formation in chain growth polymers by the incorporation of dienes with monomers...

Secondary processes are normally employed to crosslink chain growth polymers. In one example a linear thermoplastic, such as polyethylene, is compounded with an organic peroxide that is thermally stable at standard processing temperatures but decomposes to chemically react with the polymer chain at higher temperatures creating crosslinks. 

Why does chain branching reduce the rate of polymerization in chain growth polymers ... 

Another reaction mechanism that occurs in some chain-growth polymers is solvolysis. In this type of reaction, a species reacts with a C-X bond, where X represents a halogen, and breaks it. Specifically, this becomes important when describing the degradation of polyvinyl chloride. Acidic species act to remove the chlorine atom, forming hydrochloric acid. 

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