Anionic polymerization of phenyl glycidyl ether in miniemulsion

The anionic polymerization of phenyl glycidyl ether (PGE) in miniemulsion w as investigated. Didodecyldimethylammonium hydroxide was used as an inisurf , i.e., exhibiting both surface-active properties and the ability to initia te polymerization by means of its hydroxide counterion. Stable miniemulsion s were obtained by ultrasonication, and then polymerization was carried out to produce genuine alpha,omega -dihydroxylated polyether chains as reveale d by H-1 NMR, FTIR, or mass spectroscopic methods. The average molecular we ight could be increased by varying the initiator concentration, type and co ncentration of surfactants or by adding a cosurfactant (typically alcohol. In all attempts, polymer chains increased in size with conversion but remai ned small, with a critical polymerization degree of DPmax = 8. A mechanism was proposed to account for these results. From these observations, phenyl glycidyl ether could be used as a model monomer to investigate ionic polyme rization in miniemulsion.