we develop and study a mathematical model which describes how an inert species contained in the initial monomer/initiator mixture is redistributed by a propagating polymerization front. This study is relevant to the production of polymers for optical applications. @ 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords--Free radical polymerization, Frontal polymerization, Mathematical modeli...

The preparation of PEGylated fluorescent nanoparticles (NPs) based on atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and “click chemistry” in one-pot synthesis is presented. First, poly(p-chloromethyl styrene-alt-N-propargylmaleimide) (P(CMS-alt-NPM)) copolymer was prepared via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. Subsequently, the azido-containing fluorene-based...

Graft copolymer networks of poly(methacrylic acid-g-ethylene glycol) were prepared by free radical solution UV-polymerization of methacrylic acid (MAA) and poly(ethylene glycol) monomethacrylate. Dynamic swelling studies indicated that complexation/decomplexation processes occurred due to hydrogen bonding between the carboxylic groups of the poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) and the ether groups of...

The synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate-co-methacryloxysuccinimide-graft-poly(ethylene glycol)) (PMMA-co-PMASI-g-PEG) via living free radical polymerization provides a convenient route to well-defined amphiphilic graft copolymers having a controllable number of reactive functional groups, variable length PEG grafts, and low polydispersity. These copolymers were shown to form PMMA-core/PEG-she...

The synthesis of core-shell star copolymers via living free radical polymerization provides a convenient route to three-dimensional nanostructures having a poly(ethylene glycol) outer shell, a hydrophilic inner shell bearing reactive functional groups, and a central hydrophobic core. By starting with well-defined linear diblock copolymers, the thickness of each layer, overall size/molecular wei...

The aim of this research was to produce a convenient additive for enhancing the properties, especially the fluid loss, of oil well cement slurries. In this regard, a variety of drilling/cementing chemical additives known as fluid loss controllers were prepared through derivatization and chemical modification of lignite. Lignite-based graft copolymers were synthesized using different groups of a...

The rhizobitoxine analog, L-2-amino-4-(2-aminoethoxy)-trans-3-butenoic acid (Ro), which effectively inhibits ethylene production in apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) and other tissues at concentrations at about 68 micromolar, inhibited ethylene production by about 50 to 70% in green tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) fruit slices but only by about 15% in pink and ripe tomato tissue slices. Eth...

The cerium(IV)-alcohol couple in an acidic medium is an example of a redox system capable of initiating free radical polymerization. When the alcohol has a polymeric nature, the outcome of such a process is a block copolymer, a member of a class of compounds possessing many useful properties. The most common polymer with a terminal -OH group is poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG); however, the detailed...