Ethylene glycol vinyl glycidyl ether (EGVGE) was copolymerized with ethylene oxide (EO) from potassium alkoxide/naphthalenide initiators. Compared with the homopolymerization of each monomer, the rate of copolymerization was significantly slower than homopolymerization. A detailed study of the copolymerization kinetics revealed that the propagation rate constant of EGVGE in the copolymerization is 3 to 5 times larger than that of EO under our reaction conditions. We present new insight into the reactivity ratios between EO and functional glycidyl ethers such as EGVGE, and potential mechanistic explanations for trends in reactivity among epoxide monomers.

Kinetic study on copolymerizations of ethylene oxide with a functional glycidyl ether: Poly[(ethylene oxide)-co-(ethylene glycol vinyl glycidyl ether)]

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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