Chain growth and Step growth

polymerization

Submitted to
Dr. Shagufta Gulraiz

SUBMITTED BY
FARWA ASHRAF
 Chain-Growth Polymerization.

 Chain-growth polymerization adds monomer units

with the same functional group to the chain.
 Mechanism for a chain-growth polymerization

 Initiation

 Propagation

 Termination
 A chain-growth polymerization begins when an initiator reacts with
a monomer molecule to create a reactive site. This reactive site then
reacts with another monomer molecule joining the two, as well as
creating a new reactive site. Monomer molecules continue adding to
the reactive site and forming a new reactive site as long as monomer
molecules are available or until some termination reaction occurs. A
polymer that forms via a chain-growth polymerization usually forms
from one monomer or group of monomers with the same reactive
functional group. The formation of polyethylene from ethylene in
the presence of an initiator is an example of a chain-growth
polymerization.
 Radical polymerization.
 Initiation step .
 Propagation step.
 Termination step
 chain-transfer reaction.
 In a chain-transfer reaction, one growing polymer chain abstracts a
hydrogen atom from another polymer chain.
FREE-RADICAL CHAIN-GROWTH POLYMERIZATION
There are many examples of spontaneous reactions. When, for
instance, isobutylene is added to methyl a-cyanoacrylate, a
spontaneous copolymerization in a 1: 1 ratio takes place at room
temperature
The same happens when sulfur dioxide is added to
bicycloheptene at -40 °C 1\2:
Another example is a room-temperature 1: 1 copolymerization of
vinylidine cyanide with styrenell4:
 Cationic polymerization
 initiation step

• propagation step
Termination step
 Anionic polymerization
 Anionic initiation requires a strong base to initiate the polymer chain
growth. A common initiator in an anionic polymerization is sodium
naphthalide—the radical anion of naphthalene
Initiation step
 Propagation step.
Termination step
Anionic polymerizataion is also called living
polymerization.In this case termination occur by
addition of carban dioxide Water as following
Example of Chain growth Polymerization
Polysulfones can also be made by this
polymerizatiom
 linear polysilarylenesiloxanes are prepared by the

condensation of silphenylenesiloxanes, such as p-bis

(dimethylhydroxysilyl) benzene and polydimethylsiloxane in
the presence of n-hexylamine-2-ethylhexoate.
A particularly interesting polyester is poly(lactic acid).
The synthesis of poly(lactic acid) is a chain-growth
polymerization of lactic acid.
step-growth polymerization

 In step-growth polymerization, one functional group at the end of the

chain requires a different functional group to react and lengthen the
chain. A step-growth polymerization begins with a mixture of monomers
that contain different functional groups
Step 1
Exmple
polycarbonate
Synthesis of Poly(ethylene terephthalate)