Radical polymers

Once the radicals diffuse out of the solvent cage, reaction with monomer is the most probable reaction in bulk polymerizations, since monomers are the species most likely to be encountered. Reaction with polymer radicals or initiator molecules cannot be ruled out, but these are less important because of the lower concentration of the latter species. In the presence of solvent, reactions between the initiator radical and the solvent may effectively compete with polymer initiation. This depends very much on the specific chemicals involved. For example, carbon tetrachloride is quite reactive toward radicals because of the resonance stabilization of the solvent radical produced [1] ... 

Radicals incorporated into polymer radicals formed by initiator... 

Termination by disproportionation comes about when an atom, usually hydrogen, is transferred from one polymer radical to another ... 

The polymer radical concentration in Eq. (6.14) represents the total concentration of all such species, regardless of their degree of polymerization that is. 

This situation is expected to apply to radical termination, especially by combination, because of the high reactivity of the trapped radicals. Only one constant appears which depends on the diffusion of the polymer radicals, so it cannot cancel out and may be the source of a dependence of the rate constant on the extent of reaction or degree of polymerization. 

If the rate constant kj is comparable to kp, the substitution of a polymer radical with a new radical has little or no effect on the rate of polymerization. If kj hp, the rate of polymerization will be decreased by chain transfer. 

Polymerization begins in the aqueous phase with the decomposition of the initiator. The free radicals produced initiate polymerization by reacting with the monomers dissolved in the water. The resulting polymer radicals grow very slowly because of the low concentration of monomer, but as they grow they acquire surface active properties and eventually enter micelles. There is a possibility that they become adsorbed at the oil-water interface of the monomer... 

A number of methods such as ultrasonics (137), radiation (138), and chemical techniques (139—141), including the use of polymer radicals, polymer ions, and organometaUic initiators, have been used to prepare acrylonitrile block copolymers (142). Block comonomers include styrene, methyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, vinyl chloride, vinyl acetate, 4-vinylpyridine, acryUc acid, and -butyl isocyanate. 

Homogeneous GopolymeriZation. Nearly all acryhc fibers are made from acrylonitrile copolymers containing one or more additional monomers that modify the properties of the fiber. Thus copolymerization kinetics is a key technical area in the acryhc fiber industry. When carried out in a homogeneous solution, the copolymerization of acrylonitrile foUows the normal kinetic rate laws of copolymerization. Comprehensive treatments of this general subject have been pubhshed (35—39). The more specific subject of acrylonitrile copolymerization has been reviewed (40). The general subject of the reactivity of polymer radicals has been treated in depth (41). 

In these equations I is the initiator and I- is the radical intermediate, M is a vinyl monomer, I—M- is an initial monomer radical, I—M M- is a propagating polymer radical, and and are polymer end groups that result from termination by disproportionation. Common vinyl monomers that can be homo-or copolymeri2ed by radical initiation include ethylene, butadiene, styrene, vinyl chloride, vinyl acetate, acrylic and methacrylic acid esters, acrylonitrile, A/-vinylirnida2ole, A/-vinyl-2-pyrrohdinone, and others (2). 

Two other important commercial uses of initiators are in polymer cross-linking and polymer degradation. In a cross-linking reaction, atom abstraction, usually a hydrogen abstraction, occurs, followed by termination by coupling of two polymer radicals to form a covalent cross-link ... 

I- is the initiating radical, P is the chain-propagating polymer radical that subsequendy abstracts a hydrogen atom from another polymer molecule,... 

The rate of initiation, V-, i.e. the rate of formation of growing polymer radicals, can be shown to be given by... 

Since it is well known that chloroalkenes are often much less stable than the corresponding alkanes, olefinic unsaturation may be an important source of thermal instability in PVC. Chain-end unsaturation could arise by disproportionation during bimolecular reaction of polymer radicals Eq. (2). 

Competition between the various species present in the reaction mixture such as monomer, solvent, and backbone for the growing polymer radical, which means that there is competition between chain growth and various chain transferring steps. 

Competition among the terminating processes such as disproportionation after the polymer radical has formed. 

Grafting reactions onto a polymer backbone with a polymeric initiator have recently been reported by Hazer [56-60]. Active polystyrene [56], active polymethyl methacrylate [57], or macroazoinitiator [58,59] was mixed with a biopolyester polyhydroxynonanaate [60] (PHN) or polybutadiene to be carried out by thermal grafting reactions. The grafting reactions of PHN with polymer radicals may proceed by H-abstraction from the tertier carbon atom in the same manner as free radical modification reactions of polypropylene or polyhy-droxybutyratevalerate [61,62]. 

Sohma, J. and Sakaguchi, M. ESR Studies on Polymer Radicals Produced by Mechanical Destruction and Their Reactivity. Vol. 20, pp. 109 — 158. 

In order to estimate the dependence of the termination rate constant on conversion, molecular weight and temperature, the following is assumed k- becomes diffusion controlled when the diffusion coefficient for a polymer radical Dp becomes less than or equal to a critical diffusion coefficient D ... 

As the polymerization reaction proceeds, scosity of the system increases, retarding the translational and/ or segmental diffusion of propagating polymer radicals. Bimolecular termination reactions subsequently become diffusion controlled. A reduction in termination results in an increase in free radical population, thus providing more sites for monomer incorporation. The gel effect is assumed not to affect the propagation rate constant since a macroradical can continue to react with the smaller, more mobile monomer molecule. Thus, an increase in the overall rate of polymerization and average degree of polymerization results. 

The above-mentioned mode of reactions changes when the irradiation is carried out in the presence of gases such as oxygen. In this case, energy transfer, the reaction of oxygen with polymer radicals [32] (leading to the formation of peroxy radicals) and other reactions may affect the type and concentration of products formed [33]. The same can be said for certain additives mixed into the elastomer for one or the other purpose. 

R (Polymer radical) + t -OH (a hindered phenol) RH + (a stabilized radical)... 

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