This volume consists of 42 papers originally presented at the Advances in Photoinitiated Polymerizations symposium, held at the August 2001 ACS Meeting in Chicago, IL. Free radical polymerizations command most of the interest and activity within the field, and are thus discussed first. The second section discusses kinetic studies of the mechanism of free radical polymerizations. The third covers cationic photopolymerizations, which, like free radical methods, are used in many industrial applications. The fourth section discusses recent novel developments, including new photobase generators, developments in monomers, oligomers, and templated polymerizations of liquid crystal polymers. The final section portrays new and emerging applications for photopolymerizations.

From the Preface: “The field of photoinitiated polymerizations is one whose current and future importance can hardly be overstated. It is already a vital and exciting area of polymer chemistry both from an academic as well as an industrial perspective. Advances in this field are being driven by the rapid adoption of the technology of photoinitiated polymerizations, known generally as UV-curing, by industry for a myriad of uses. These uses encompass both high-volume applications such as coatings, adhesives, and printing inks as well as advanced high technology uses...”

Target Audience: Chemists, materials scientists, and polymer engineers concerned with photoinitiated polymerization.

Partial Table of Contents:

Free Radical Photopolymerization Chemistry:

N-Vinylamides and Reduction of Oxygen Inhibition in Photopolymerization of Simple Acrylate Formulations

Spectroscopic Investigation of Three-Component Initiator Systems

Photoinitiation of Acrylates via Sensitized Phthalimide Derivatives

Photoinitiated Polymerization of Selected Thiol-ene Systems

Mechanical Aspects of Maleimide—Donor Photocopolymerizations

Kinetic Studies of Free Radical Photopolymerization:

Photoinitiated Cross-Linking Polymerization of Monomer Blends

Kinetics of Photopolymerization of Acrylate Coatings

Effect of Preorganization Due to Hydrogen Bonding on the Rate of Photoinitiated Acrylate Polymerization

Oxygen Inhibition Effect on Surface Properties of UV-Curable Acrylate Coatings

Oxygen and Radical Photopolymerization in Films

Cationic Photopolymerization:

Synergistic Free Radical Effects in Photoinitiated Cationic Polymerization

Diazonium Salts as Cationic Photoinitiators: Radical and Cationic Aspects

Phenothiazine Photosensitizers for Onium Salt Photoinitiated Cationic Polymerization

Visible and Long-Wavelength Cationic Photopolymerization

Cationic Photopolymerization of 2-Phenyloxetanes

Photocurable Pressure-Sensitive Adhesives Using Alkyl Oxetane

Thermomechanical Studies of Photoinitiated Cationic Polymerization of a Cycloaliphatic Epoxy Resin

New Photopolymerization Chemistry:

Harvesting the Fields of Inorganic and Organometallic Photochemistry for New Photoinitiators

Synthesis and Photochemical Reaction of High-Performance UV-Curing Oligomers

Photocurable, Hydrophobic Oligomers Based on Liquid Polybutadienes

UV-Curable Acrylated Oligomers: Effect of Sturctural Variations on Liquid and Cured Film Properties

Continuous Photopolymerization in a Novel Thin Film Spinning Disc Reactor

New and Emerging Applications for Photoinitiating Polymerizations:

Two-Photon Photoinitiated Polymerization

UV-Curing of Fluorinated Systems: Synthesis and Properties

Autohesion of Polyethylene Plates by the Photoinduced Grafting of Methacrylamide

Index