Copolymers of Acrylonitrile and Acrylic Acid: Effect of Composition and Distribution of Chain Units on the Thermal Behavior of Copolymers

The copolymers of acrylonitrile and acrylic acid are synthesized for the first time by trithiocarbonate-mediated reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization in DMSO at a content of comonomers in the reaction mixture of 40%. Various regimes of acrylic acid introduction into the reaction are tested. This makes it possible to synthesize copolymers with close average composition and different unit distribution in a chain. It is shown that, with an increase in the fraction of acrylic acid in the copolymer, the contribution of the ionic mechanism of cyclization grows, which is favorable for widening the temperature interval of cyclization and decrease in the intensity of heat flow. Reduction in the rate of introduction of acrylic acid into copolymerization and, as a consequence, its more uniform distribution in the chain lead to analogous effects and cause a decrease in the activation energy of cyclization by both the ionic and radical mechanism. Thus, the use of reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization with the dosed introduction of the comonomer allows one to tune the properties of the copolymers during their heat treatment.