Radical copolymerization of fullerene (C₆₀) and n‐butyl methacrylate (BMA) using triphenylbismuthonium ylide and characterization of C₆₀–BMA copolymers

Abstract

Radical copolymerization of fullerene (C 60 ) and n-butyl methacrylate (BMA) has been carried out using triphenylbismuthonium ylide as an initiator at 70 • C for 4 h in a dilatometer under nitrogen atmosphere. The kinetic expression of the polymerization is R p α [Ylide] 0.5 [C 60 ] −1.0 [BMA] 1.2 , which is similar to that expected for ideal kinetics. The rate of polymerization increases with an increase in the concentration of initiator and BMA. However, it decreases with an increase in the concentration of fullerene. Fullerene acts as radical scavengers causing retardation in polymerization.

Radical Reactions of Fullerenes: From Synthetic Organic Chemistry to Materials Science and Biology

“…All copolymers have significantly different spectroscopic properties from both styrene and C 60 and show novel optical properties. Other free-radical copolymerizations of fullerenes with common monomers including styrene, , methyl methacrylate, ,,,, n -butyl methacrylate, 4-vinyl-benzoic acid, 2-cyanoethyl acrylate, and cyanovinyl acetate, have also been reported.…”