Radical‐initiated copolymers of styrene and p‐formylstyrene, 1. Solution copolymerization and characterization

Abstract

AbstractKinetics of solution homopolymerization of p‐formylstyreneSystem name: 4‐vinylbenzaldehyde. (A) and copolymerization with styrene (S) have been examined at 60°C in N,N‐dimethylformamide with 2,2′‐azoisobutyronitrile as initiator. For p‐formylstyrene, kp/k = 0,135 L1/2 · mol−1/2 · s−1/2 was estimated from the plot of monomer consumption versus time, i.e. a value greater than that for styrene (Kp and Kt are the rate constants of propagation and termination and termination, respectively). Reactivity ratios have been determined to be rA = 3,0 and rS = 0.2, indicating the reactivity of p‐formylstyrene to be higher than that of styrene. Moreover, from initial copolymerization rates, the cross termination factor was calculated and found to depend upon the copolymer composition. Some solution properties of the homo‐ and copolymers have been analysed: solubility of (co)polymers, their molecular weight and its distribution (by gel permeation chromatography), and their composition and monomer sequence distribution (using 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy).