Q14. What is the role of benzoyl peroxide in addition to the polymerisation of alkenes? Explain its mode of action with the help of an example.
Answer: The role of benzoyl peroxide is to generate free radicals. A variety of alkenes or dienes and their derivatives are polymerised in the presence of a free radical generating initiator (catalyst) like benzoyl peroxide, tert-butyl peroxide, etc. For example, the polymerisation of ethene with a small amount of benzoyl peroxide initiator. The process starts with adding phenyl free radical formed by the peroxide to the ethane double bond, thus generating a new and more significant free radical. This step is called the chain initiating step.
