Controlled free radical polymerization facilitates the production of polymers with highly defined microstructures like traditional ionic polymerization; but in contrast allows for previously unattainable monomer combinations such as acrylic acid in its non-protected form. Incorporation of acrylic acid into styrene was done by random copolymerization of acrylic acid (directly and in its protected form as tert-butyl acrylate) with styrene. Styrene/tert-butyl acrylate (S/t-BuA) as well as styrene/acrylic acid (S/AA) mixtures were copolymerized to form tapered or gradient copolymers. Using an alkoxyamine unimolecular initiator, 2-[N- tert-butyl-2,2-(dimethylpropyl)aminooxy] propionic acid (BlocBuilder RTM), along with additional free nitroxide (SG1), the effect of acid protection on polymerization kinetics and copolymer composition was determined. Adding 4.5 mol% SG1/BlocBuilderRTM greatly improved the control of S/t-BuA copolymerization with low polydispersities (1.14-1.22) whereas the S/AA required higher levels of SG1 to produce polymers with low polydispersities that were comparatively still broader compared to the S/t-BuA system (polydispersities ∼ 1.3-1.4 at 9 mol% SG1/BlocBuilderRTM). S/AA copolymerization required higher SG1 concentrations to compensate for degradation of SG1 by attack from the acrylic acid monomer.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.111944 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Lessard, Benoît H., 1985- |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Engineering (Department of Chemical Engineering.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 003134151, proquestno: AAIMR66938, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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