Aqueous Polymerization of Acrylonitrile with Cerium(IV)‐ p‐Hydroxyacetophenone Redox System

Abstract

Aqueous polymerization of acrylonitrile initiated by Ce(IV)/p-hydroxy acetophenone (Ce(IV) – HAP) was studied in aqueous solution of sulfuric acid at 40°C. The rate of polymerization was investigated at various concentrations of monomer, initiator, activator, sulfuric acid and the effect of temperature of 30-70°C range was studied. The rate of polymerization is governed by the expression Rp = Kp [M]1.44[Ce(IV)]0.55[HAP]0.51. The activation energy of polymerization was found to be 17.9 kJ/mol. A probable mechanism consistent with the observed results is proposed and discussed.