Telomerization of Methyl Methacrylate with Bromotrichloromethanc

Abstract

The photoinitiated reaction between methyl methacrylate and bromotrichloromethane has been studied at 30°C. The products have been analyzed by gel permeation chromatography and the relative proportions of the smaller individual telomers have been estimated. The average degrees of polymerization have also been determined by end-group analysis, using 14C-labelled bromotrichloromethane as photoinitiator. Values of the transfer constants for the first seven radical intermediates have been obtained; these undergo an increase in size over the first three propagation steps to a constant value equal to that of the transfer constant for polymeric radicals.