Radical Copolymerization of 2-Vinyl Pyridine with Functional Methacrylates: Monomer Reactivity Ratios and Thermal Properties

Statistical copolymers of 2-vinylpyridine (VP) with 2-diethyl amino ethyl methacrylate (DEAEMA), di (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate (DEGMA), and 2-butoxyethylmethacrylate (BuOEMA) were prepared by free radical copolymerization. The reactivity ratios of every set ofmonomers were estimated using the Finemann-Ross, the inverted Finemann-Ross and the Kelen-Tudos graphical methods. Structural parameters of the copolymers were obtained by calculating the dyad monomer sequence fractions and the mean sequence length. The effect of the chemical nature of the methacrylates on the copolymerization characteristics is discussed. The glass-transition temperature (Tg) values of the VP copolymers with DEAEMA,DEGMA, andBuOEMAweremeasured and examined bymeans of several theoretical equations, allowing for the prediction of these Tg values.