Polymerization methacrylate polymerizations

Acrylate and methacrylate polymerizations are accompanied by the Hberation of a considerable amount of heat and a substantial decrease in volume. Both of these factors strongly influence most manufacturing processes. Excess heat must be dissipated to avoid uncontrolled exothermic polymerizations. In general, the percentage of shrinkage decreases as the size of the alcohol substituent increases on a molar basis, the shrinkage is relatively constant (77). 

Emulsion Polymerization. Emulsion polymerization is the most important industrial method for the preparation of acryhc polymers. The principal markets for aqueous dispersion polymers made by emulsion polymerization of acryhc esters are the paint, paper, adhesives, textile, floor pohsh, and leather industries, where they are used principally as coatings or binders. Copolymers of either ethyl acrylate or butyl acrylate with methyl methacrylate are most common. 

Three bulk polymerization processes are commercially important for the production of methacrylate polymers batch cell casting, continuous casting, and continuous bulk polymerization. Approximately half the worldwide production of bulk polymerized methacrylates is in the form of molding and extmsion compounds, a quarter is in the form of cell cast sheets, and a quarter is in the form of continuous cast sheets. 

Initiators, usually from 0.02 to 2.0 wt % of the monomer, are dissolved in the reaction solvents and fed as a separate stream to the kettle. Because oxygen is an inhibitor of methacrylic polymerizations, its presence is undesirable. When the polymerization is carried out below reflux temperatures, oxygen concentration is lowered by a sparge with carbon dioxide or nitrogen, and a blanket of the inert gas is then maintained over the polymerization mixture. 

Group-Transfer Polymerization. Living polymerization of acrylic monomers has been carried out using ketene silyl acetals as initiators. This chemistry can be used to make random, block, or graft copolymers of polar monomers. The following scheme demonstrates the synthesis of a methyl methacrylate—lauryl methacrylate (MMA—LMA) AB block copolymer (38). LMA is CH2=C(CH2)COO(CH2) CH2. 

These combination polymers can be used as a starting substance for methyl methacrylate polymerization. 

There are some indications that the situation described above has been realized, at least partially, in the system styrene-methyl methacrylate polymerized by metallic lithium.29 29b It is known51 that in a 50-50 mixture of styrene and methyl methacrylate radical polymerization yields a product of approximately the same composition as the feed. On the other hand, a product containing only a few per cent of styrene is formed in a polymerization proceeding by an anionic mechanism. Since the polymer obtained in the 50-50 mixture of styrene and methyl methacrylate polymerized with metallic lithium had apparently an intermediate composition, it has been suggested that this is a block polymer obtained in a reaction discussed above. Further evidence favoring this mechanism is provided by the fact that under identical conditions only pure poly-methyl methacrylate is formed if the polymerization is initiated by butyl lithium and not by lithium dispersion. This proves that incorporation of styrene is due to a different initiation and not propagation. 

Table 15. Physico-mechanical characteristics and heats of mixing with chloroform (dH3) of poly(butyl methacrylate) polymerization-filled with aerosil (10% by mass) [333, 334]...

Smith et al.511 have recently suggested a composite model based on similar considerations to predict k over the entire chain length range. Experimental data for k A for dodecyl methacrylate polymerization consistent with such a model have been provided by Buback et rd. J... 

A number of NMP processes have been reported where the nitroxide is formed in situ. Nitrones 1 and nitroso-compounds128 have been used as nitroxide precursors. Control of methacrylate polymerization by mixtures of nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide has also been attributed to in situ formation of a nitroxide. 130... 

Chung and coworkers have reported on the use of stable borinale or boroxyl radicals (e.g. 114) to mediate radical polymerization." Methacrylates (MMA) and acrylates (trifluoroelhyl acrylate) have been polymerized at ambient temperature to yield polymers with relatively narrow molecular weight distributions.231233 The method has been used to prepare block copolymers and polyolefin graft copolymers.2 4 37... 

A side reaction in NMP is loss of nilroxide functionality by thermal elimination. This may occur by disproportionation of the propagating radical with nitroxide or direct elimination of hydroxy lam ine as discussed in Section 9.3.6.3. In the case of methacrylate polymerization this leaves an unsaturated end group.1" The chemistry has also been used to prepare macromonomers from PMMA prepared by ATRP (Section 9.7.2.1),... 

Addition of TEMPO post-polymerization to a methacrylate polymerization provides an unsaturated chain end (Scheme 9.52)i07 sw presumably by disproportionation of the PMMA propagating radical with the nitroxide. For polymers based on monosubstituted monomers (PS,1 0" PBA59,[Pg.534]

The striking simplicity of the methacrylate polymerization caused by the introduction of a t-butyl group was noted also in anionic polymerization of related monomers such as t-butyl acrylate57), t-butyl crotonate 58) and t-butyl vinyl ketone. 

This paper presents the physical mechanism and the structure of a comprehensive dynamic Emulsion Polymerization Model (EPM). EPM combines the theory of coagulative nucleation of homogeneously nucleated precursors with detailed species material and energy balances to calculate the time evolution of the concentration, size, and colloidal characteristics of latex particles, the monomer conversions, the copolymer composition, and molecular weight in an emulsion system. The capabilities of EPM are demonstrated by comparisons of its predictions with experimental data from the literature covering styrene and styrene/methyl methacrylate polymerizations. EPM can successfully simulate continuous and batch reactors over a wide range of initiator and added surfactant concentrations. 

Torkelson and coworkers [274,275] have developed kinetic models to describe the formation of gels in free-radical pol5nnerization. They have incorporated diffusion limitations into the kinetic coefficient for radical termination and have compared their simulations to experimental results on methyl methacrylate polymerization. A basic kinetic model with initiation, propagation, and termination steps, including the diffusion hmitations, was found to describe the gelation effect, or time for gel formation, of several samples sets of experimental data. 

The presence of two hydroxyl groups per molecule in poly-(methyl methacrylate) and in polystyrene, each polymerized in aqueous media using the hydrogen peroxide-ferrous ion initiation system, has been established " by chemical analysis and determination of the average molecular weight. Poly-(methyl methacrylate) polymerized by azo-bis-isobutyronitrile labeled with radioactive has been shown to... 

Data illustrating the relationship of the initial rate to the concentration of monomer at fixed initiator concentration are given in Table X for styrene in benzene and for methyl methacrylate polymerized at various concentrations in the same solvent. If the efficiency / of utilization of primary radicals is independent of the monomer concentration, the quantity given in the last column should be... 

In this paper the GPC interpretation underlying the kinetic model of methyl methacrylate polymerization previously publMied and by now shown to be useful is detailed and updated. It provides a prime example of the conventional experimental use of GPC in homopolymerization studio. 

Free radical copolymerizations of the alkyl methacrylates were carried out in toluene at 60°C with 0.1 weight percent (based on monomer) AIBN initiator, while the styrenic systems were polymerized in cyclohexane. The solvent choices were primarily based on systems which would be homogeneous but also show low chain transfer constants. Methacrylate polymerizations were carried out at 20 weight percent solids... 

Preparation of Block Copolymers. Poly(styrene-b-methyl methacrylate) and poly(styrene-b-t-butyl methacrylate) were prepared by procedures similar to those reported for poly(styrene-b-methyl methacrylate (12,13). Poly(methyl methacrylate-b-t-butyl methacrylate) was synthesized by adaptation of the method published (14) for syndiotactic poly(methyl methacrylate) polymerization of methyl methacrylate was initiated with fluorenyllithium, and prior to termination, t-butyl methacrylate was added to give the block copolymer. Pertinent analytical data are as follows. 

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