Uncatalyzed Polymerization of Methyl Methacrylate in the Presence of Starch

Abstract

Uncatalyzed polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) in the system of starch-water or starch-water-carbon tetrachloride was carried out in vacuo sealed tube at 40°C for 5 hrs. As the result, both total conversion (T) and yield of homopolymer (H) showed maximum values at 2 vol.% of CCl4. Percentage of grafting (P), graft efficiency and percentage of weight increment (W) of corn starch (CS) were markedly diminished by addition of CCl4. The polymerization of MMA was somewhat hindered by the presence of CS, while it was accelerated by the presence of potato starch (PS) . The (H) value was exclusively increased by addition of the emulsifier. When air was enclosed into the sealed tube and the polymerization was attained, the (P) value, the (W) value and the (H) value were increased by this system compared with vacuo system. Moreover, a small quantity of oxygen in the sealed tube further increased the (P) value. As for the effect of the kind of starch on the (T) value, the PS increased the (T) value more than the CS. The (T) value was increased by a slight amount of cupric salt absorbed on the starch. In this case, the effect of kind of starch on the (T) value showed a similar tendency.