Radiation-induced polymerization of nitroethylene

Abstract

A study of radiation-induced polymerization of nitroethylene indicates an anionic mechanism involving free ions. By the use of hydrogen bromide as an anionic scavenger, the kinetics of the polymerization have been investigated. G(initiation) is about 3, which is much larger than the value (0.1) obtained for many cationic polymerizations of hydrocarbons. This difference may be explained in terms of the large dielectric constant and high electron affinity of this monomer. By kinetic analysis, the propagation rate constant k_p at 10°C is estimated to be 4 × 10⁷ M^–1 sec^–1.