Nitroxide-Mediated Photo-Controlled/Living Radical Polymerization of Methacrylic Acid

The photo-controlled/living radical polymerization of methacrylic acid (MAA) was performed at room temperature by irradiation with a high-pressure mercury lamp using azo initiators and 4-methoxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl as the mediator in the presence of (4-tert-butylphenyl)diphenylsulfonium triflate (tBuS) as the accelerator. Whereas the bulk polymerization yielded polymers with a bimodal molecular weight distribution in both the absence and presence of tBuS, the solution polymerization in methanol produced unimodal polymers with the molecular weight distribution of 2.0 - 2.3 in the presence of tBuS. The molecular weight distribution of the resulting poly (MAA) decreased with an in- crease in tBuS. The dilution of the monomer concentration also reduced the molecular weight distribution. The use of the initiator with a low 10-h half-life temperature also effectively controlled the molecular weight. The livingness of the polymerization was confirmed by obtaining linear increases in the first-order conversion versus time, the molecular weight versus the conversion, and the molecular weight versus the reciprocal of the initiator concentration.

CONTROLLED/"LIVING" RADICAL POLYMERIZATION OF STYRENE IN AN AQUEOUS DISPERSION SYSTEM

Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of styrene catalyzed by cuprous (CuX)/1,10-phenanthroline (Phen) and CuX/CuX2/Phen was conducted in an aqueous dispersed system. A stable latex was obtained by using ionic surfactant sodium lauryl sulfonate (SLS) or composite surfactants, such as SLS/polyoxyethylene nonyl phenyl ether (OP-10), SLS/hexadecanol and SLS/OP-10/hexadecanol, Among which SLS and SLS/OP-10/hexadecanol systems established better dispersed effect during the polymerization, It was found that Phen was a more suitable ligand than N,N,N',N',N'-pentamethyldiethylenetriamine (PMDETA) to maintain an appropriate equilibrium of the activator Cu(I) and the deactivator Cu(II) between the organic phase and the water phase, The effect of several initiators (such as EBiB, CCl4 and 1-PEBr) and the temperature on such a kind of ATRP system was also observed. The number-average molar mass (M-n) of polystyrene (PS) increased with the conversion and the molar mass distribution (M-w/M-n) remained narrow. These experimental data show that the polymerization could be controlled except for the quick increase of monomer conversion and the number-average molar mass of PS in the initial stage of polymerization. Furthermore, the initiator efficiency was found to be low (similar to57%) in CuX/Phen catalyzed system. To overcome this problem, Cu(II)X-2 (20 mol%-50 mol% based on CuX) was introduced into the polymerization system. In this case, higher initiator efficiency (60%-90%), low M-w/M-n of PS (as low as 1.08) were achieved and the molar masses of the PS fit with the theoretical ones.

“LIVING”/CONTROLLED RADICAL POLYMERIZATION OF ETHYL METHYLACRYLATE WITH 2,2’-AZOBISISOBUTYRONITRILE/FERRIC CHLORIDE/TRIPHENYLPHOSPHINE INITIATION SYSTEM

'Living'/controlled radical polymerization of ethyl methacrylate (EMA) was carried out with a 2,2'-azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN)/ferric chloride (FeCl_3)/triphenylphosphine (PPh_3) initiation system at 85℃. Thc numberaverage molecular weight (M_n) increases linearly with monomer conversion and the rate of polymerization is first order withrespect to monomer concentration. The M_w of PEMA ranges from 3900 to 17600 and the polydispersity indices are quitenarrow (1.09～1.22). The conversion can reach up to～100% and M_w of the polymers obtained is close to that designed. Thepolymerization mechanism belongs to the reverse atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The polymer was end-functionalized by chlorine atom, which acts as a macroinitiator to proceed extension polymerization in the presence ofCuBr/bipy catalyst system via an ATRP process. The presence of ω-chlorine in the PEMA obtained was identified by ~1H-NMR spectrum.

Controlled Radical Polymerization of Styrene in the Presence of Different Copper Complexes and Organic Halides

The polymerization behaviors of Styrene (St) in the presence of CuX/L [X=Cl or Br; L= 2,2 bipyridine (bpy), 1,10 phenanthroline (phen) or 4,7 diphenyl 1,10 phenanthroline (DPP) ] and R X (R=trichloromethyl, benzyl or allyl; X=Cl or Br) have been studied and examined. In a CuCl/bpy/RCl/St system, a bimodal GPC peak at the early stage of polymerization was observed, and a concept of multi active species was proposed to explain this phenomenon. In a CuCl/phen (DPP)/RCl/St system, the \%M\%\-n of polystyrene (PS) increased linearly with St conversion and ln[M] o/[M] also increased linearly with time, indicating the living nature of this system. Furthermore, the stability of the propagating active species in a CuBr/phen/RBr/St system is higher than that in the CuBr/phen/RBr/St system.

LIVING/CONTROLLED GRAFTING FROM POLYMER MICROSPHERES

A review is given of grafting-from methods using living polymerizations, with emphasis on grafting from polymermicrospheres using ATRP.

ABA TRIBLOCK COPOLYMERS WITH PENDANT HYDROXYL GROUPS PREPARED BY CONTROLLED CATIONIC POLYMERIZATION AND THEIR USE AS DELIVERY CARRIER FOR PACLITAXEL

To improve the hydrophilicity ofpoly（styrene-b-isobutylene-b-styrene） （SIBS）, this study focuses on the synthesis of novel functional ABA triblock copolymer thermoplastic elastomers （TPEs） with polyisobutylene （PIB） as rubbery segments. The precursor poly{（styrene-co-4-[2-（tert-butyldimethylsiloxy） ethyl]styrene）-b-isobutylene-b-（styrene-co-4-[2- （tert-butyldimethylsiloxy）ethyl]styrene）}（P（St-co-TBDMES）-PIB-P（St-co-TBDMES）） triblock copolymer was first synthesized by living sequential cationic copolymerization of isobutylene （IB） with styrene （St） and 4-[2-（tert- butyldimethylsiloxy）ethyl]styrene （TBDMES） using 1,4-di（2-chloro-2-propyl）benzene （DiCumC1）/titanium tetrachloride （TiCla）/2,6-di-tert-butylpyridine （DtBP） as the initiating system. Then, P（St-co-TBDMES）-PIB-P（St-co-TBDMES） was hydrolyzed in the presence of tetra-butylammonium fluoride to yield poly{[styrene-co-4-（2-hydroxyethyl）styrene]-b- isobutylene-b-[styrene-co-4-（2-hydroxyethyl）styrene]} （P（St-co-HOES）-PIB-P（St-co-HOES）） with pendant hydroxyl groups. P（St-co-HOES）-PIB-P（St-co-HOES） used as the paclitaxel carrier was also investigated in this study. Comparing with SIBS, P（St-co-HOES）-PIB-P（St-co-HOES） has exhibited better compatibility with paclitaxel and higher release rate.

Living/controlled polymerization of vinylpyridines into sequence-regulated copolymers by Lewis pair

The poly(vinylpyridine)(PVP) based(co)polymers are of particular interest in materials science, due to their multifunctionality and diverse applications. So far, there is no report on the sequence-regulated copolymerization of vinylpyridines(VPs) and methacrylate monomer in one-step manner yet. Here we designed and synthesized a series of guanidine phosphines as Lewis base(LB), which is combined with bulky organoaluminium to construct Lewis pairs(LPs) for polymerization of VPs. The living/controlled polymerization of 4-vinylpyridine(4-VP) or 2-vinylpyridine(2-VP) can be accomplished with remarkable efficiency by such Lewis pair polymerization(LPP), furnishing polymers with high molecular weight(up to 288 kg/mol) and narrow molecular weight distribution(as low as 1.17). Mechanistic studies reveal the interaction of LPs and formation of zwitterionic intermediates, providing solid evidences to support the proposed polymerization mechanism. More importantly, by simply adjusting the LA dosage, this LPP strategy realizes the unprecedented control over the sequence regulation of 2-VP-based copolymers from gradient to block in one-step manner, regardless of the monomer ratio, which greatly expands the versatility of the LPP.

Chemoselective and Living/Controlled Polymerization of Alkenyl Methacrylates by the Phosphonium Ylide/Organoaluminum Lewis Pairs

Chemoselective,living/controlled polymerizations of allyl methacrylate(AMA) and vinyl methacrylate(VMA) with/without methyl methacrylate(MMA) by using the phosphonium ylide/organoaluminum based Lewis pairs(LPs) have been realized.The P-ylide-2/AIMe(BHT)_(2)(Pylide-2=Ph_(3)P=CHMe and BHT=2,6-iBu_(2)-4-MeC_(6)H_(2)O) was demonstrated to be superior by which homopolymers PAMAs(M_(n)=27.6-111.5kg/mol and ■=1.14-1.25) and PVMAs(M_(n)=28.4-78.4 kg/mol and ■=1.12-1.18) and block copolymers PMMA-b-PAMA,PAMA-b-PVMA,PAMA-bPMMA,PMMA-b-PAMA-b-PMMA,PAMA-b-PMMA-b-PAMA,and PAMA-b-PVMA-b-PAMA were synthesized.In the polymerizations,all of the monomers were reacted by the conjugated ester vinyl groups leaving intactly the nonconjugated acryloxy groups.The pendant acryloxy groups attached to the main chain enable further to post-functionalization by the AIBN-induced radical "thiol-ene" reaction using PhCH_(2)SH.The thiolether side group-containing polymers PAMA-SCH_(2)Ph and PAMA-SCH_(2)Ph-b-PMMA-b-PAMA-SCH_(2)Ph were thus prepared.

“Controlled” and “Living” Cationic Polymerizations:Another Way Towards Well Defined Polymer Architectures and Materials

1 Results No doubt that one of the major breakthroughs in polymer chemistry was the discovery and the progressive implementation of the "living" and "controlled" polymerizations.These now widely used techniques allow not only to control with an extreme precision the molar masses and their distributions but also to synthesise easily a broad variety of architectures from block and graft copolymers,miktoarms stars,to polymer brushes,hyperbranched polymers,dendrimers,etc....They opened an immense domain of ...

REVERSE ATOM TRANSFER RADICAL POLYMERIZATION OF STYRENE WITH COPPER-BASED CATALYST

'Living'/controlled radical polymerization of styrene was carried out with diethyl 2,3-dicyano-2,3-diphenylsuccinate (DCDPS)/CuCl2/bipyridine (bipy) initiation system at 120 degreesC. The molecular weights of resultant PSt increased with the monomer conversion and the polydispersities were in the range of 1.37 similar to1.52. A linear ln([M](o)/[M]) versus time plot was also obtained indicating the constant concentration of growing radicals during the polymerization with this initiation system. End group analysis by H-1-NMR spectroscopic studies showed that the end groups of the polymer obtained is omega -functionalized by a chlorine group from the catalyst and alpha -functionalized by a (carbethoxy-cyano-phenyl)methyl group from the fragments of the initiator. Having CI atom at the chain end, the PSt obtained can be used as a macroinitiator to promote a chain-extension reaction with fresh St and block copolymerization reaction with a second monomer, such as methyl methacrylate, in the presence of CuCl/bipy catalyst via a conventional ATRP process.

Synthesis of Glutathione Imprinted Polymer Particles via Controlled Living Radical Precipitation Polymerization

A general protocol was described for fabricating uniform molecularly imprinted polymer （MIP） particles via controlled living radical precipitation polymerization at ambient temperature. By adopting glutathione as model template, benzyl dithiocarbamate as iniferter agent, 4-vinylpyridine as monomer, and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as cross-linker, it is demonstrated that the polymerization parameters including the iniferter concentration, monomer loading and molar ratio of cross-linker to functional monomer have profound effect on the final particle size and recognition property of the MIP particles. The batch static binding experiments were carried out to estimate the adsorption kinetics, adsorption isotherms and selective recognition of the MIP particles. The adsorption behavior followed the pseudo-second order kinetic model, revealing that the process was chemically carried out. Two adsorption isotherm models were applied to analyze equilibrium data, obtaining the best description by Langmuir isotherm model. In addition, the MIP particles also could selectively recognize glutathione over similar analogs, indicating the possibility for the separation and enrichment of the template from complicated matrices.

Real-time Monitoring of Living Cationic Ring-opening Polymerization of THF and Direct Prediction of Equilibrium Molecular Weight of Poly THF

A convenient real-time monitoring of monomer concentration during living cationic ring-opening polymerizations of tetrahydrofuran（THF） initiated with methyl triflate（Me OTf） has been developed for kinetic investigation and determination of equilibrium monomer concentration（[M]e） via in situ FTIR spectroscopy in combination with a diamond tipped attenuated total reflectance（ATR） immersion probe. The polymerization rate was first order with respect to monomer concentration and initiator concentration from the linear slope of ln（[M]0-[M]e）/（[M]-[M]e） versus polymerization time at different temperatures in various solvents. [M]e decreased linearly with initial monomer concentration while increased exponentially with increasing polymerization temperature. The equilibrium also strongly depends on solvent polarity and its interaction with monomer. The equilibrium polymerization time（te） decreased with increasing solvent polarity and decreased linearly with increasing [M]0 in three solvents with different slopes to the same point of bulk polymerization in the absence of solvent. Equation of Mn,e = 72.1/（0.14–0.04[M]e） has been established to provide a simple and effective approach for the prediction for the number-average molecular weight of poly THFs at equilibrium state（Mn,e） in the equilibrium living cationic ring-opening polymerization of THF at 0 °C.

Mechanism study and molecular design in controlled/“living” radical polymerization

This tutorial review summarizes recent progress in the research field of controlled/"living" radical polymerization (CLRP) from Soochow University.The present paper gives a broad overview of the mechanism study and molecular design in CLRP.The mechanism study in CLRP aided by microwave,initiated by γ-radiation at low temperature,mediated by iron,in reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization and the mechanism transfer between different CLRP processes are reviewed and summarized.The molecular design in CLRP,especially in RAFT polymerization for mechanism study,and in achieving tailor-made functional polymers is studied and discussed in the later part.

A User-friendly Living Cationic Polymerization: Degenerative Chaintransfer Polymerization of Vinyl Ethers by Simply Using Mixtures of Weak and Superstrong Protonic Acids

Mixtures of a weak protonic acid and a trace amount of superstrong protonic acid were used for the simple control of the cationic polymerization of vinyl ethers via a degenerative chain-transfer mechanism, in which the former acid works as a precursor of the chain transfer agent (CTA) or the dormant species and the latter works as a source of the cationic propagating species. The addition of mixtures of phosphoric acid dibutyl ester ((n=BuO)2PO2H) or 1 -octanethiol (n-C8H17SH) and a trace amount of trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (TfOH) to a solution of isobutyl vinyl ether (IBVE) at -78℃ resulted in polymers with controlled molecular weights, which were basically determined by the feed ratio of IBVE to the weak protonic acid, and narrow molecular weight distributions (Mw/Mn≈ 1.1). These results were almost the same as those obtained using their prepared adducts of IBVE as CT As in the presence of a trace amount of TfOH under similar conditions. Methanesulfonic acid (CH3SO3H), whose adduct of IBVE has not been isolated due to instability, was similarly used in conjunction with trace TfOH to result in controlled molecular weights but slightly broader MWDs (Mw/Mn = 1.2-1.8). These results indicate that the sulfoxonium ion is also an effective intermediate in the cationic DT polymerization in addition to the phosphonium and sulfonium intermediates derived from (n=BuO)2PO2H and C8H17SH, respectively. The simple living cationic polymerization was thus achieved by using a combination of a weak protonic acid and a trace amount of TfOH, which are both easily available, low cost, free from metal, and easy to handle, without need for preparation of the initiator.

Photo-induced Living Cationic Copolymerization of Isobutyl Vinyl Ether and Vinyl Ether with Carbazolyl Groups

In this work, a fluorescent monomer 2-（9-carbazolyl） ethyl vinyl ether（CEVE） was synthesized in our lab, and its photo-induced living cationic copolymerization behavior with isobutyl vinyl ether（IBVE） was investigated in detail using diphenyliodonium chloride（DPICl）/2,2-dimethoxy-2-phenylacetophenone（DMPA） and zinc bromide（Zn Br2） initiating system in dichloromethane solution at 5 °C, -5 °C, and -15 °C, respectively. The living nature of this copolymerization system was confirmed by adding fresh comonomer method after the copolymerization almost finished. In addition, the obtained fluorescent copolymer poly（IBVE-co-CEVE） has a low glass transition temperature（Tg）, below -10 °C.

Electro-selective interconversion of living cationic and radical polymerizations

Orchestrating conflicting polymerization mechanisms in a single polymerization process through one external stimulus is a prerequisite to achieve in-situ selective synthesis of different monomers. Here we report an electrochemically controlled mechanism transformation that enables selective activation of living cationic or radical polymerization via an alternating voltage and dual electrocatalysts. Using identical mixed-monomer condition, a variety of desired block copolymer structures, including diblock, multiblock, random, and tapered copolymers can be obtained by simply varying the periods or phases of the alternating potential. Moreover, merging this electro-interconverted polymerization with a flow-chemistry technique can streamline preparation of functional polymer materials with complex multiblock structure. This study would offer a new vision on large-scale electrochemical synthesis of sequence-defined polymers.

Controlled/living ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone catalyzed by phosphoric acid

The bulk ring-opening polymerization （ROP） of ε-caprolactone （ε-CL） by various phosphoric acids using phenylmethanol as the initiator was conducted. 1, 1＇-bi-2-Naphthol （BINOL）-based phosphoric acid was found to be an effective organocatalyst for ROP leading to polyesters at 90℃. The overall conversion to poly（ε-caprolactone） was more than 96% and poly（ε-caprolactone） with Mw of 8400 and polydispersity index of 1.13 was obtained. IH NMR spectra of oligomers demonstrated the quantitative incorporation of the protic initiator in the polymer chains and showed that transesterification reactions did not occur to a significant extent. The controlled polymerization was indicated by the linear relationships between the number-average molar mass and monomer conversion or monomer-to-initiator ratio. In addition, the present protocol provided an easy-to-handle, inexpensive and environmentally benign entry for the synthesis of biodegradable materials as well as polyesters for biomedical applications.

Mechanistic Transformations Involving Radical and Cationic Polymerizations

Mechanistic transformation approach has been widely applied in polymer synthesis due to its unique feature combining structurally different polymers prepared by different polymerization mechanisms.Reported methods for the formation of block and graft copolymers through mechanistic transformation involve almost all polymerizations modes.However,certain polymerization processes require extensive purification processes,which can be time-consuming and problematic.Recent developments on controlled/living polymerizations involving radical and cationic mechanisms with the ability to control molecular weight and functionality led to new pathways for mechanistic transformations.In this mini-review,we systematically discussed relevant advances in the field through three main titles namely(i)from radical to cationic mechanism,(ii)from cationic to radical mechanism,and(iii)application of specific catalyst systems for both radical and cationic polymerizations.

Controlled free radical polymerization of styrene initiated from the alkoxyamine-functionalized silicon surface

We describe a new method of fabricating a brush-like polystyrene layer anchored on the surface of the silicon substrate, which involves three steps, namely (i) the attachment of 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane onto the silicon surface; (ii) the reaction of vinyl moiety at another extremity of the anchored 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane to 4-Hydroxyl-2, 2, 6, 6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy (HTEMPO?) catalyzed by azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN); (iii) living free radical grafting polymerization of styrene in the presence of HTEMPO?. The controllable living free radical polymerization permits accurate control of both the molecular weight and the polydispersity. X-photoelectron spectroscopy measurement proved that the alkoxyamine initiator layer forms on the silicon surface. XPS and Ellipsometry measurements showed that the poly-styrene chains were covalently anchored onto the silicon surface. The thickness of the grafted polymer layer can be accurately manipulated by altering the polymerization time. The new method allows synthesizing random copolymer and block copolymers by the sequential growth of monomers from the substrate surface.

镍催化可控/活性自由基聚合反应研究进展

可控/活性自由基聚合是近年来发展的温和、聚合反应进程可控、分子结构可设计性强的自由基聚合反应技术,其核心在于活性自由基中间体与催化剂/链转移剂的可逆活化/失活过程,常用于极性单体聚合制备结构多样的有机高分子材料。镍催化剂具有多变的中心金属价态及多样的聚合反应机理,在可控/活性自由基聚合领域存在独特的优势。对近年来原子转移自由基聚合(ATRP)和有机金属控制的活性自由基聚合(OMRP)中的镍催化剂结构、聚合反应机理、反应行为和产物结构特征进行了综述,并对镍催化的可控/活性自由基聚合未来发展方向和应用前景进行了展望。