Sonochemical initiation of vinyl polymerization of methacrylamide in the presence of peroxodisulfate

Vinyl polymerization of methacrylamide (M) in the presence of ultrasound of frequency 1 Mhz and peroxodisulphate (PDS) as initiator has been carried out in detail. Rate parameters for the disappearance of monomer (R-p) and the initiator (-d[PDS]/dt) have been followed simultaneously and found that R-p depends on [Monomer] and [PDS](1/2) while - d[PDS]/dt depends on [PDS] alone. The composite rate constant and the individual rate constant have been evaluated for the polymerization and compared with acrylamide. A probable mechanism has been put forth in order to explain the observed experimental results.