Influence of hydrogen bonding on photopolymerization rate of hydroxyalkyl acrylates

The relationship between the photopolymerization rate of hydroxyalkyl acrylates and their structure has been investigated. The polymerization rates of hydroxyalkyl acrylates are significantly higher than those observed for typical monofunctional acrylate monomers and rival those of multifunctional monomers. By polymerizing at several temperatures, it was shown that the enhanced rates are directly proportional to the degree of hydrogen bonding. Apparently, termination rates are greatly reduced by hydrogen bonding, which is present in both the unpolymerized monomer and the final polymer film.