PHOTOINITIATED BULK-POLYMERIZATION OF FURFURYL METHACRYLATE - EXPERIMENTAL AND KINETIC MODELING RESULTS OBTAINED AT DIFFERENT TEMPERATURES

A kinetic model has been proposed for the photopolymerization of furfu ryl methacrylate taking into account degradative transfer by the furan ring. Solution of the ordinary differential equation system obtained through the proposed kinetic scheme and the Arrhenius correlation have allowed one set of kinetic constants to be chosen from several estima ted sets at different temperatures. The Arrhenius parameter values cal culated for each individual proposed step in the model were found to b e in good agreement with experimental values for methyl methacrylate a nd furan compounds. The apparent calculated activation energy gave the value 3.1 kcal mol(-1) which was close to the experimental value (3.4 kcal mol(-1)) determined photocalorimetrically. In all steps where al lylic radicals were involved, the activation energy values were found to be higher in comparison to those steps in which less-stabilized spe cies operate. Statistical analysis of the adequacy of the model has sh own excellent agreement between the experimental data and those determ ined theoretically at different temperatures using the best set of kin etic constants ''estimated'' by simulation. (C) 1998 Published by Else vier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.