FREE-RADICAL SUSPENSION POLYMERIZATION KINETICS OF STYRENE UP TO HIGHCONVERSION

Styrene was polymerized using different amounts of azoisobutyronitrile as initiator at temperatures of 70 degrees C, 75 degrees C and 80 deg rees C in suspension. The course of reaction up to almost complete con version was modeled within a classical kinetic framework. Optimal simu ltaneous descriptions of both conversion and average degree of polymer ization data were possible using two sets of values for the variation of the overall termination rate coefficient k(t) with conversion. One explanation for this is that k(t) is chain length dependent. Evidence for this necessity was derived by considering all kinetic parameters, except the termination rate coefficient, as reliable absolute values.