Polymerization method employing tubular reactor

In a method for the polymerization of an organic monomeric material to a synthetic resinous thermoplastic polymer, the polymer being soluble in the monomeric material, the steps of the method comprising passing the monomeric material into an inlet of an elongate unstirred tubular reactor maintaining the monomeric material within the tubular reactor at a temperature sufficient to induce polymerization of at least a portion of the monomer to form polymer, discharging and recovering polymerized thermoplastic material from the tubular reactor, the improvement which comprises intermittently feeding monomer material to the reactor in quantities not greater than 0.5 reactor volume converting at least 50 percent of the monomer introduced to polymer prior to discharge from the reactor subsequently introducing additional monomer.