Silacyclobutane as “Carbanion Pump” in Anionic Polymerization. 2. Effective Trapping of the Initially Formed Carbanion by Diphenylethylene

Abstract

The initially formed carbanion from dimethylsilacyclobutane and potassium tert-butoxide was trapped in as high as 88% yield in the presence of 1,1-diphenylethylene as evidenced by quenching with methyl iodide. The initiator efficiency of 76% was obtained by using a combination of potassium tert-butoxide, dimethylsilacyclobutane, and 1,1-diphenylethylene carbanion pump system as an initiator in the polymerization of methyl methacrylate.