CHEMICAL TRANSFORMATION OF NITRILE TO REACTIVE OXAZOLINE FUNCTIONALITY ON A PREFORMED POLYMER

The chemical transformation of nitrile to oxazoline functionality via a soluble zinc salt-catalyzed reaction was conducted on a series of ni trile-containing copolymers, i.e., styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) and nit rile rubbers. The results show that triad tacticity of the acrylonitri le groups is important in understanding the relative reactivity of SAN copolymers. Furthermore, the dielectric properties of the comonomer i s also a prime factor in understanding the different degrees of reacti vity of SAN, nitrile rubbers, and its hydrogenated analog forms. Enhan ced reaction rates are noted with higher dielectric constants. (C) 199 5 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.