A series of C4-C 12 alkyl acrylates and methacrylates was polymerized with starch by irradiating starch-monomer mixtures with 60CO. Homopolymers were extracted with cyclohexane. The amounts of insoluble versus soluble synthetic polymer in polymerizations run with alkyl acrylates varied less with the chain length of the alkyl substituent than in the polymerizations run with alkyl methacrylates: ...

In previous papers (1,2) the thermotropic properties and the kinetics of the bulk polymerization of the mesomorphic monomer cholesteryl acrylate have been described. In addition to cholesteryl acrylate, the methacrylate was prepared, as well as the respective acrylic methacrylic acid ester of cholestanol. We now wish to report the properties of these monomeric esters and the results of their po...

In this paper, we show that a noncrystalline but ordered smectic-like phase exists above the bulk-melting temperature (T(m)) at poly(n-alkyl acrylates)-air interface. The surface ordered phase is one monolayer thick and undergoes a sharp transition from order to disorder 10 degrees C above T(m) for n=22. The presence of a surface phase that does not exist in the bulk has important implications ...

Nickel-catalyzed coupling of benzyl acrylates with activated ketones and imines provides γ-butyrolactones and lactams, respectively. The benzyl alcohol byproduct released during the lactonization/lactamization event is relayed to the next cycle where it serves as the reductant for C-C bond formation. This strategy represents a conceptually unique approach to transfer-hydrogenative C-C bond form...