Miscellaneous Copolymerizations of Alkenes

A variety of reactants—including sulfur dioxide, carhon monoxide, and oxygen, which do not homopolymerize—undergo radical copolymerization with alkenes to form polymeric sul-fones [Bae et al., 1988 Cais and O Donnell, 1976 Dainton and Ivin, 1958 Floijanczyk et al., 1987 Soares, 1997], ketones [Sommazzi and Garhassi, 1997 Starkweather, 1987, and peroxides [Cais and Bovey, 1977 Mukundan and Kishore, 1987 Nukui et al., 1982]  

There is a tendency toward alternation in the copolymerization of ethylene with carbon monoxide. Copolymerizations of carbon monoxide with tetrafluoroethylene, vinyl acetate, vinyl chloride, and acrylonitrile have been reported but with few details [Starkweather, 1987]. The reactions of alkenes with oxygen and quinones are not well defined in terms of the stoichiometry of the products. These reactions are better classified as retardation or inhibition reactions because of the very slow copolymerization rates (Sec. 3-7a). Other copolymerizations include the reaction of alkene monomers with sulfur and nitroso compounds [Green et al., 1967 Miyata and Sawada, 1988]. 

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