Dialkyl fumarates with bulky ester substituents were found to homopolymerize easily in the presence of 2,2'-azobisisobutyronitrile. Among these fumarates, diisopropyl fumarate(DiPF1 homopolymerized with the above initiator(20mol/ 1) in bulk at 40~60'C to give homopolymers with number-average molecular weight of 70 000-221 000. Similar results were also observed for di-t-butyl fumarate (DtBF) and Methyl-t-butyl fumarate (MtBF) .

A new type of colorimetric sensor that detects formaldehyde in air was developed. The sensor consists of a thin film containing primary amino groups on a glass substrate. After exposure to gaseous formaldehyde, the thin film was immersed in an aqueous solution containing an anionic dye. The color of the thin film distinctly changed in accordance with the formaldehyde concentration in air. It was found that the sensitivity of this sensor is significantly affected by factors such as the exposure time, the humidity of air, and the monomer composition of the thin film.