DEVELOPMENT OF IODINE TRANSFER POLYMERIZATION AND ITS APPLICATIONS TO TELECHELICALLY REACTIVE POLYMERS

Alkyl iodides are very reactive because of the least class bond dissociation energy between carbon and iodine compared with general carbon to hydrogen or carbon to the other halogens. Using this reactivity of iodide in radical mechanism, we developed a "radical living" polymerization method called "Iodine Transfer Polymerization". It becomes possible from the successive radical chain transfer from growing polymer radicals to the terminal iodines at any stages of polymer molecules under polymerization. The following products are now being developed from the above-mentioned principle. 1) Easily telechelically crosslinkable fluoroelastomers by peroxide system with triallylisocyanurate as a coagent. 2) Various kinds of blockpolymers including thermoplastic elastomer. 3) Telechelically reactive liquid polymers.