Vinyl acetate radical addition

For the remaining three systems, styrene-vinyl acetate, vinyl acetate-vinyl chloride, and methyl acrylate-vinyl chloride, one reactivity ratio is greater than unity and the other is less than unity. They are therefore nonazeotropic. Furthermore, since both ri and 1/7 2 are either greater than or less than unity, both radicals prefer the same monomer. In other words, the same monomer—styrene, vinyl chloride, and methyl acrylate in the three systems, respectively—is more reactive than the other with respect to either radical. This preference is extreme in the styrene-vinyl acetate system where styrene is about fifty times as reactive as vinyl acetate toward the styrene radical the vinyl acetate radical prefers to add the styrene monomer by a factor of about one hundred as compared with addition of vinyl acetate. Hence polymerization of a mixture of similar amounts of styrene and vinyl acetate yields an initial product which is almost pure polystyrene. Only after most of the styrene has polymerized is a copolymer formed... 

The Smith-Ewart mechanism does not take into account any polymerization in the aqueous phase. This may be true for monomers that are quite insoluble in water, like styrene, but appears unlikely for more hydrophilic ones like methyl methacrylate or vinyl acetate. In addition, it was calculated by Flory that there is insufficient time for a typical cation radical (like a sulfate ion radical) to add to a dissolved molecule of monomer like styrene before it becomes captured by a micelle. This was argued against, however, on the ground that Flory s calculations fail to consider the potential energy barrier at the micelle surfaces from the electrical double layer. This barrier would reduce the rate of diffusion of the radical ions into the micelles. ... 

Additional additives are also often included for various purposes. For example, buffers are added primarily to control the pH of the solution between pH 4 and 6 to prevent hydrolysis of the poly(vinyl acetate). An additional purpose of a buffer is to eliminate variations in radical generation of those initiators whose decomposition rates are pH dependent. Chain transfer agents are also commonly added to control the molecular weight within certain tolerances. A variety of thiols, aldehydes, or halogen compoimds have been employed for this purpose. 

Under similar reaction conditions, dimethoxyphosphoryl radicals were found to be much less nucleophilic than diphenylphosphinoyl radicals. Thus, a 2 1 molar mixture of vinyl acetate and acrylonitrile gave approximately equal amounts of the two addition products 23 and 24 indicating that acrylonitrile is only twice as reactive as vinyl acetate toward addition of dimethoxyphosphoi7l radicals. Suiprisingly, the ratio of /err-butoxyl radical addition O ONR2 O ONR2... 

Modifications of epichlorohydrin elastomers by radical-induced graft polymeri2ation have been reported. Incorporated monomers include styrene and acrylonitrile, styrene, maleic anhydride, vinyl acetate, methyl methacrylate, and vinyHdene chloride (81), acryHc acid (82), and vinyl chloride (81,83,84). When the vinyl chloride-modified epichlorohydrin polymers were used as additives to PVC, impact strength was improved (83,84). 

Free radical polymerization is a key method used by the polymer industry to produce a wide range of polymers [37]. It is used for the addition polymerization of vinyl monomers including styrene, vinyl acetate, tetrafluoroethylene, methacrylates, acrylates, (meth)acrylonitrile, (meth)acrylamides, etc. in bulk, solution, and aqueous processes. The chemistry is easy to exploit and is tolerant to many functional groups and impurities. 

Now, the separation of polymers from the reaction mixtnre containing the vinyl additive indicates that the snbstrate prodnces a radical at the intermediate stage. The radical prodnced adds to a probe molecnle and forms an addnct with the vinyl monomer, that is, initiates the monomer polymerization. Sometimes, however, the polymerization does not start bnt the reaction yields a low-molecnlar-weight individnal snbstance containing fragments of substrate, an added monomer, and reactant. To illnstrate, let ns consider the following reaction of perfluoroalkyl iodide (snbstrate) with nitropropenide salt (reactant) in the presence of a monomer probe (vinyl acetate, methylmethacrylate, and styrene) (Feiring 1983) ... 

The work function of the rubbing surfaces and the electron affinity of additives are interconnected on the molecular level. This mechanism has been discussed in terms of tribopolymerization models as a general approach to boundary lubrication (Kajdas 1994, 2001). To evaluate the validity of the anion-radical mechanism, two metal systems were investigated, a hard steel ball on a softer steel plate and a hard ball on an aluminum plate. Both metal plates emit electrons under friction, but aluminum produced more exoelectrons than steel. With aluminum, the addition of 1% styrene to the hexadecane lubricating fluid reduced the wear volume of the plate by over 65%. This effect considerably predominates that of steel on steel. Friction initiates polymerization of styrene, and this polymer formation was proven. It was also found that lauryl methacrylate, diallyl phthalate, and vinyl acetate reduced wear in an aluminum pin-on-disc test by 60-80% (Kajdas 1994). 

Most addition polymers are formed from polymerizations exhibiting chain-growth kinetics. This includes the typical polymerizations, via free radical or some ionic mode, of the vast majority of vinyl monomers such as vinyl chloride, ethylene, styrene, propylene, methyl methacrylate, and vinyl acetate. By comparison, most condensation polymers are formed from systems exhibiting stepwise kinetics. Industrially this includes the formation of polyesters and polyamides (nylons). Thus, there exists a large overlap between the terms stepwise kinetics and condensation polymers, and chainwise kinetics and addition (or vinyl) polymers. A comparison of the two types of systems is given in Table 4.1. 

Polar effects appear to be of prime importance in determining the effect of quinones. p-Benzoquinone and chloranil (which are electron-poor) act as inhibitors toward electron-rich propagating radicals (vinyl acetate and styrene) but only as retarders toward the electron-poor acrylonitrile and methyl methacrylate propagating radicals. A further observation is that the inhibiting ability of a quinone toward electron-poor monomers can be increased by the addition of an electron-rich third component such as an amine. Thus the presence of triethylamine converts chloranil from a very weak retarder to an inhibitor toward methyl methacrylate. 

The rates of radical-monomer reactions are also dependent on considerations of steric hindrance. This is easily observed by considering the reactivities of di, tri-, and tetrasubstituted ethylenes in copolymerization. Table 6-5 shows the kn values for the reactions of various chloroethylenes with vinyl acetate, styrene, and acrylonitrile radicals. The effect of a second substituent on monomer reactivity is approximately additive when both substituents are in the 1- or a-position. However, a second substituent when in the 2- or (3-position of the monomer results in a decrease in reactivity due to steric hindrance between it and the radical to which it is adding. Thus 2-10-fold increases and 2-20-fold decreases in the reactivities of vinylidene chloride and 1,2-dichloroethylene, respectively, are observed compared to vinyl chloride. 

The last of the direct methods for graft initiation in liquid phase presented in this review involves chemical additives. Either free radical or ionic initiators can be chosen. Benzoyl peroxide is reported for grafting styrene on Nylon fibers in methanol media (71,105-107), as well as vinyl acetate (106). Azoisobutyro-nitrile has been employed in systems where the graft monomer is styrene (71,106) or vinyl acetate (106). Redox systems involving hydrogen peroxide and monomers like styrene (106,108,109). vinyl acetate (106), acrylic acid (108,109), methyl... 

Some strategies used for the preparation of support-bound thiols are listed in Table 8.1. Oxidative thiolation of lithiated polystyrene has been used to prepare polymeric thiophenol (Entry 1, Table 8.1). Polystyrene functionalized with 2-mercaptoethyl groups has been prepared by radical addition of thioacetic acid to cross-linked vinyl-polystyrene followed by hydrolysis of the intermediate thiol ester (Entry 2, Table 8.1). A more controllable introduction of thiol groups, suitable also for the selective transformation of support-bound substrates, is based on nucleophilic substitution with thiourea or potassium thioacetate. The resulting isothiouronium salts and thiol acetates can be saponified, preferably under reductive conditions, to yield thiols (Table 8.1). Thiol acetates have been saponified on insoluble supports with mercaptoethanol [1], propylamine [2], lithium aluminum hydride [3], sodium or lithium borohydride, alcoholates, or hydrochloric acid (Table 8.1). 

A large number of accurate rate constants are known for addition of simple alkyl radicals to alkenes.33-33 Table 2 summarizes some substituent effects in the addition of the cyclohexyl radical to a series of monosubstituted alkenes.36 The resonance stabilization of the adduct radical is relatively unimportant (because of the early transition state) and the rate constants for additions roughly parallel the LUMO energy of the alkene. Styrene is selected as a convenient reference because it is experimentally difficult to conduct additions of nucleophilic radicals to alkenes that are much poorer acceptors than styrene. Thus, high yield additions of alkyl radicals to acceptors, such as vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate, are difficult to accomplish and it is not possible to add alkyl radicals to simple alkyl-substituted alkenes. Alkynes are slightly poorer acceptors than similarly activated alkenes but are still useful.37... 

Considering now reactions (5 a) and (5 b) (p. 176), it was found that the addition of monomers to macroradicals produced by chain transfer depends directly on the reactivity and polarity of both the radical and the monomer (203) and that the Q—e scheme of Alfrey and Price can be applied to these graft copolymerizations by chain transfer (227). In this way some unsuccessful attempts for grafting were interpreted, e. g. vinyl acetate on polystyrene and methyl methacrylate on polyvinyl acetate and polyvinyl chloride. 

---