Organometallic compounds, polymerizations initiation

For the polymerization of unsaturated monomers with organometallic compounds, the initiator concentration must generally be between 10" and 10 /mol of monomer cocatalysts are usually unnecessary. Polymerization frequently occurs at temperatures below 20 °C. Raising the temperature increases the rate of polymerization, but usually decreases the tacticity or tactic content when stereospecific initiators are used. An induction period is rarely observed. 

Acrylate monomers do not generally polymerize by a cationic mechanism. However, the anionic polymerization of acrylic monomers to stereoregular or block copolymers is well known. These polymerizations are conducted in organic solvents, primarily using organometallic compounds as initiators. 

Anionic Polymerization with Organometallic Compounds as Initiators... 

Low surface energy substrates, such as polyethylene or polypropylene, are generally difficult to bond with adhesives. However, cyanoacrylate-based adhesives can be effectively utilized to bond polyolefins with the use of the proper primer/activa-tor on the surface. Primer materials include tertiary aliphatic and aromatic amines, trialkyl ammonium carboxylate salts, tetraalkyl ammonium salts, phosphines, and organometallic compounds, which are initiators for alkyl cyanoacrylate polymerization [33-36]. The primer is applied as a dilute solution to the polyolefin surface, solvent is allowed to evaporate, and the specimens are assembled with a small amount of the adhesive. With the use of primers, adhesive strength can be so strong that substrate failure occurs during the course of the shear tests, as shown in Fig. 11. 

Here M is the transition metal and L are other ligands of the initial organometallic compounds. In this case individual organometallic compounds are considered to be true catalysts, and the question of the dependence of the polymerization rate on the character of metal-ligand bonds in the initial organometallic compounds is discussed (123). 

Unfortunately, at present the information characterizing the properties of the active bond in polymerization catalysts is very scant. The analogy between the features of the active bonds in the propagation centers and those of the transition metal-carbon bond in individual organometallic compounds is sure to exist, but as in the initial form the latter do not show catalytic activity in olefin polymerization this analogy is restricted to its limits. 

The core first method starts from multifunctional initiators and simultaneously grows all the polymer arms from the central core. The method is not useful in the preparation of model star polymers by anionic polymerization. This is due to the difficulties in preparing pure multifunctional organometallic compounds and because of their limited solubility. Nevertheless, considerable effort has been expended in the preparation of controlled divinyl- and diisopropenylbenzene living cores for anionic initiation. The core first method has recently been used successfully in both cationic and living radical polymerization reactions. Also, multiple initiation sites can be easily created along linear and branched polymers, where site isolation avoids many problems. 

A variety of basic (nucleophilic) initiators have been used to initiate anionic polymerization [Bywater, 1975, 1976, 1985 Fontanille, 1989 Hsieh and Quirk, 1996 Morton, 1983 Morton and Fetters, 1977 Quirk, 1995, 1998, 2002 Richards, 1979 Szwarc, 1983 Young et al., 1984]. These include covalent or ionic metal amides such as NaNFU and LiN(C2H5)2, alkoxides, hydroxides, cyanides, phosphines, amines, and organometallic compounds such as n-C4H9Li and <)>MgBr. Initiation involves the addition to monomer of a nucleophile (base), either a neutral (B ) or negative (B ) species. 

Strong bases such as alkali metals, metal hydrides, metal amides, metal alkoxides, and organometallic compounds initiate the polymerization of a lactam by forming the lactam anion XXXIV [Hashimoto, 2000 Sebenda, 1989 Sekiguchi, 1984], for example, for e-caprolactam with a metal... 

Water, alcohols, ethers, or amines can cause inhibition of ionic polymerization. However, these substances can act in different ways according to their concentration. For example, in polymerizations initiated by Lewis acids (BF3 with isobutylene) or organometallic compounds (aluminum alkyls), water in small concentrations behaves as a cocatalyst, but in larger concentrations as an inhibitor (reaction with the initiator or with the ionic propagating species). 

For some monomers (e.g., nitroethylene and 2-cyano-2,4-hexadienoic acid ester, CH3-CH=CH-CH=C(CN)-COOR), anionic polymerization can be conducted in aqueous alkaline solution. Other anionic initiators are Lewis bases, e.g., tertiary amines or phosphines, and organometallic compounds (see Sect. 3.2.1.2). Since the polarizability of unsaturated compounds depends very much on the substituents and on the solvent used, there are considerable differences in the effectiveness of the initiators mentioned. 

Anionic polymerization can be initiated with tertiary phosphines or amines, with organometallic compounds or with alcoholates. With all of these, initiation occurs by nucleophilic attack on the positive carbonyl carbon atom ... 

The first results of anionic polymerization (the polymerization of 1,3-butadiene and isoprene induced by sodium and potassium) appeared in the literature in the early twentieth century.168,169 It was not until the pioneering work of Ziegler170 and Szwarc,171 however, that the real nature of the reaction was understood. Styrene derivatives and conjugated dienes are the most suitable unsaturated hydrocarbons for anionic polymerization. They are sufficiently electrophilic toward carbanionic centers and able to form stable carbanions on initiation. Simple alkenes (ethylene, propylene) do not undergo anionic polymerization and form only oligomers. Initiation is achieved by nucleophilic addition of organometallic compounds or via electron transfer reactions. Hydrocarbons (cylohexane, benzene) and ethers (diethyl ether, THF) are usually applied as the solvent in anionic polymerizations. 

In ihe mid-1950s, the Nobel Prize-winning work of K. Ziegler and G. Natta introduced anionic initiators which allowed the stcrcospceific polymerization of isoprene lo yield high cis-1,4 structure, much hke nalural rubber. At almost the same time, another route to stereospecific polymer architecture by organometallic compounds was announced. 

Polymerization proceeded at room temperature and was initiated by metal alkoxides or organometallic compounds ((i-QH Al, (C2H5)2Zn). Mn of these polymers was... 

For each initiator there is a useful temperature range for which the initiator decomposition rate constant, kd, will produce radicals at suitable rates for polymerization. The initiation rate is usually controlled by the decomposition rate of the initiator, which depends directly on its concentration (first-order reaction). The temperature window can be enlarged by the use of catalysts such as a tertiary amine (Eq. (2.80)), or an organometallic compound in a redox reaction (Eqs (2.81) and (2.82)). 

Synthetic routes include anionic, cationic, zwitterionic, and coordination polymerization. A wide range of organometallic compounds has been proven as effective initiators/catalysts for ROP of lactones Lewis acids (e.g., A1C13, BF3, and ZnCl2) [150], alkali metal compounds [160], organozinc compounds [161], tin compounds of which stannous octoate [also referred to as stannous-2-ethylhexanoate or tin(II) octoate] is the most well known [162-164], organo-acid rare earth compounds such as lanthanide complexes [165-168], and aluminum alkoxides [169]. Stannous-2-ethylhexanoate is one of the most extensively used initiators for the coordination polymerization of biomaterials, thanks to the ease of polymerization and because it has been approved by the FDA [170]. 

K does not lead to complexation or the formation of any organometallic compounds [73, 75], In the case of PX and Cl-PX such deposition proceeds without polymerization. The co-deposition of CN-PX with Ag is accompanied by the partial polymerization of monomer. The initial condensates at 77 K contain a small amount of Ag nanocrystals which can be revealed and characterized using UV-vis spectroscopy because such crystals (as it has been shown in Subsection 2.1) have the specific absorption band of surface electron plasmons 430 nm [77], UV irradiation of these condensates at 77 K leads to total conversion of monomers to corresponding polymers (PPX, C1PPX, and CNPPX). However, intensity (/)cr), maximum position and half-width... 

To begin, let s consider the anionic polymerization of styrene. For an initiator, we will choose an organometallic compound an organic compound bonded to a metal atom) such as butyllithium, C4H9 Li+. Although the details differ, you should recognize the overall similarity of the mechanism for this anionic polymerization to that for the free radical polymerization of ethylene, above (initiation, propagation, and termination). 

A great majority of organometallic compounds, especially of those which can be used as initiators, are easily solvolyzed by polar molecules. Inactive or weakly active products are formed. If the properties of the metal-carbon bond are to be useful for initiating anionic polymerizations, the organometallic compound must be able to yield a carbanion, either free or bound to the counter ion. 

As in free radical polymerization, there are initiation and propagation steps. Various initiators, such as organometallic compounds, alkali metals, Grignard reagents, or metal amides, like sodium amide, shown in Figure 3-31, can be used. Propagation proceeds in the usual manner, but there is no termination... 

Different techniques have been used to study the products of photoreactions of organometallic compounds for example, irradiation of the arene complexes [CpFe() -arene)]+ resulted in the substitution of the arene by solvent or other potential ligands present in solution. In solutions containing an epoxide monomer, this photochemical reaction generated a species that initiated polymerization. Ion cyclotron resonance Fourier transform mass spectrometry and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry were used to elucidate the mechanism of these photoinitiated polymerizations. 

Conversion-lime curves for batch polymerizations are usually S-shaped, with a slow rate initial period followed by a steady reaction rale interval and then a declining rate period. The first period corresponds mainly to the formation of active sites by reaction of the organometallic compound with the transition metal compound. The second, steady polymerization rate interval indicates that the number of active sites and the rate of diffusion of the monomer to the reactive sites are constant. The decreasing reaction rate period corresponds to progressive destruction of active sites and/or to a slowing of the diffusion rate of monomer, as access to the catalyst is hindered by the surrounding polymer. 

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