Radical polymerization, furans

Gandini and Rieumont26,119 have carried out an extensive examination of the polymerizability of several vinyl esters of furan carboxylic acids and of the causes of the autoinhibition which most of them display with free-radical initiation. The compounds studied were the vinyl esters of 2-furoic, 2-furylacetic, 2-furylpropionic, 2-furylacrylic and sorbic acid. All these derivatives, showed the same strong indifference towards radical polymerization. Only when treated with large doses (10—30%) of initiator did they give small yields of oligomers. The structure of all these products was carefully studied by spectroscopic and other techniques. Invariably, it was... 

V. The Retarding and Inhitibing Role of Furan Derivatives in Radical Polymerization... 

There are several reports scattered in the literature of the retarding effect of simple furan derivatives in the polymerization of a specific monomer. Hardy69, U6 found that furan, 2-furoic acid and its esters, and 5-substituted-2-furoie acids were strong retarders in the radical polymerization of vinyl acetate, but did not act likewise with styrene. He proposed that as a result of the reactions of the free radicals with the furan derivatives, dihydro- and tetrahydrofurans would form, but he did not produce any evidence to support these speculations. Clarke, Howard and Stock-... 

Finally, addition polymerization of suitably substituted furans allows incorporation of the furan nucleus into heterocyclic polymers (77MH1102). 2-Vinylfuran apparently exhibits free radical polymerizability comparable with that of styrene, although rates, yields and degrees of polymerization are low under all conditions except for emulsion polymerization. Cationic polymerization is quite facile and leads not only to the poly(vinylfuran) structure (59), as found in free radically produced polymers, but also to structures such as (60) and (61) in which the furan nucleus has become involved. Furfuryl acrylate and methacrylate undergo free radical polymerization in the manner characteristic of other acrylic esters. 

In the above condensation resist designs, the phenolic resin offers a reaction site as well as base solubility. Self-condensation of polymeric furan derivatives has been utilized as an alternative crosslinking mechanism for aqueous base development (Fig. 126) [375]. The copolymer resist is based on poly[4-hydroxy-styrene-co-4-(3-furyl-3-hydroxypropyl)styrene], which was prepared by radical copolymerization of the acetyl-protected furan monomer with BOCST followed by base hydrolysis. The furan methanol residue, highly reactive toward electrophiles due to a mesomeric electron release from oxygen that facilitates the attack on the ring carbons, readily yields a stable carbocation upon acid treatment. Thus, the pendant furfuryl groups serve as both the latent electrophile and the nucleophile. Model reactions indicated that the furfuryl carbocation reacts more preferentially with the furan nucleus than the phenolic functionality. 

Singha et al. reported DA cross-linked products [158] using furan-modified polymethacrylate (PFMA) as the polymeric precursor, which was prepared through atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and free-radical polymerization (FRP). Furthermore, the self-healing behavior of a triblock copolymer (PFMA-co-MMA) prepared by ATRP was demonstrated by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM). With the modification, an almost fully recovered surface from knife-cut samples has been observed [159]. Chen et al. also reported the DA polymer product of PFMA-BM possessing thermal reversibility, whereas the homopolymer was prepared from anionic polymerization [160]. 

The fact that the typical furyl radicals in Scheme 6.6 are unable to propagate in the classical mode of free radical polymerization because of their resonance stabilization, has profound consequences in terms of the reactivity of furan monomers in this type of polymerization and the role of furan derivatives as possible perturbing agents in free radical chain reactions in general. These specific aspects will be illustrated below. 

Although cyanoacrylate polymers are most commonly prepared by anionic polymerization, they may also be prepared by free-radical polymerization using conventional radical initiators (36-38), provided adequate amounts of anionic polymerization inhibitors are employed. Bulk photoanionic polymerization of cyanoacrylates has also been described by a number of workers (39-43). These systems rely on the in situ generation of an anionic initiator from a neutral species, following absorption of light of an appropriate wavelength. The zwitterionic and radical copolymerization of cyanoacrylates has also been reported for a number of comonomers including vinyl ethers (44), ketene acetals (45), furan (46), vinyl ketones (47), and ethylene (48). 

The radical-catalyzed polymerization of furan and maleic anhydride has been reported to yield a 1 1 furan-maleic anhydride copolymer (89,91). The stmcture of the equimolar product, as shown by nmr analyses, is that of an unsaturated alternating copolymer (18) arising through homopolymerization of the intermediate excited donor—acceptor complex (91,92). 

The furfuryl esters of acrylic and methacrylic acid polymerize via a free-radical mechanism without apparent retardation problems arising from the presence of the furan ring. Early reports on these systems described hard insoluble polymers formed in bulk polymerizations and the cross-linking ability of as little as 2% of furfuryl acrylate in the solution polymerization of methylacrylate121. ... 

Recent work on the synthesis, structure and some properties of macromolecules bearing furan rings is discussed. Two basic sources of monomers are considered, viz. furfural for monomers apt to undergo chain polymerization and hydroxymethylfurfural for monomers suitable for step polymerization.Within the first context, free radical, catiomc and anionic systems are reviewed and the peculiarities arising from the presence of furan moieties in the monomer and/or the polymer examined in detail. As for the second context, the polymers considered are polyesters, polyethers, polyamides and polyurethanes. Finally, the chemical modification of aU these oligomers, polymers and copolymers is envisaged on the basis of the unique reactivity of the furan heterocycle. 

Finally, 2-vinyl furan 2a displays an intermediate behaviour in that it polymerizes slowly (because "normal" radicals formed from addition to the vinyl group are relatively stabilized), but gives modest DPs and limiting yields due to the fact that the furan rings pendant to the polymer chains act as radical traps which retard the polymenzation and inhibit it above a certain concentration (equivalent to a given polymer yield). 

Preparation of addition polymers having the oxolene (dihydrofuran) functionality can be envisioned to occur in two possible ways (Scheme 13). Both, in fact, have been observed (77MI11102). Whereas furan (53) or its derivatives do not homopolymerize under free radical conditions, 1 1 alternating copolymers possessing the 1,4-structure are produced with maleic anhydride (50). Intermediate formation of a CT complex between monomers (50) and (53) is believed to be necessary before polymerization can occur. On the other hand, cationic polymerization is quite facile. The outcome is straightforward with benzo[f>]furan derivatives, producing 1,2-polymers. Optically active poly(benzofurans) are formed when the cationic polymerizations are conducted in the presence of a chiral anion. 

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