Poly(vinyl alcohol) obtained through polymerization of some vinyl esters

Abstract

AbstractBulk and/or solution polymerizations of a series of vinyl esters, e.g., vinyl acetate, vinyl propionate, vinyl butyrate, vinyl pivalate, and vinyl benzoate were conducted. Iodine‐coloration, 1,2‐glycol structure, molecular weight, and tacticity (triad and pentad) were measured for the resulting poly(vinyl alcohol)s (PVAs). The iodine‐coloration abilities of PVAs, derived from poly(vinyl ester)s that were obtained through bulk polymerization at 60°C, depended on the starting monomer, increasing in the following order: vinyl benzoate < vinyl acetate < vinyl propionate < vinyl butyrate < vinyl pivalate. In solution polymerizations of vinyl propionate and vinyl butyrate, it was revealed that the tacticity of the derived PVAs apparently depended on the type and amount of polymerization solvent employed, as found previously in the case for vinyl acetate. The iodine‐coloration of these PVA samples varied in the same order as their syndiotactic content, while no relationship was observed toward their 1,2‐glycol content. The probabilities of the syndiotactic propagation at 60°C were estimated as 0.49 (benzoate), 0.54 (acetate), 0.55 (propionate), 0.56 (butyrate), and 0.60 (pivalate), respectively.