Issue 75, 2016

Utilising alternative modifications of α-olefin end groups to synthesise amphiphilic block copolymers

Abstract

Amphiphilic block copolymers comprised of polyisobutylene (PIB) and poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (DMAEMA) have been synthesised. This has been achieved via two new synthetic processes. Firstly, a PIB macroinitiator was synthesised from PIB that is primarily terminated by an α-olefin, hydroboration/oxidation of the terminal α-olefin followed by esterification with α-bromoisobutyryl bromide furnished the desired macroinitiator. The PIB macroinitiator was then utilised to polymerise DMAEMA by SET-LRP at different block lengths of PDMAEMA. However, end fidelity of the PIB macroinitiator was low (60%) and as such synthesising a block of PDMAEMA with a predictable degree of polymerisation was not possible. PIB-b-PDMAEMA block copolymers were also synthesised by reactive coupling of functional homopolymers, primary amine terminated PDMAEMA and polyisobutenyl succinic anhydride (PIBSA). Variable molecular weight well-defined PDMAEMA was synthesised by SET-LRP using an azide bearing initiator followed by transformation of the azide end group to a primary amine. All primary amine functionalised PDMAEMA was then coupled with PIBSA to synthesise PIB-b-PDMAEMA, demonstrated by GPC. However, the capabilities of this synthetic approach was limited as more than one PDMAEMA may couple to the PIBSA, therefore not synthesising pure PIB-b-PDMAEMA copolymers.

Graphical abstract: Utilising alternative modifications of α-olefin end groups to synthesise amphiphilic block copolymers

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
13 Jun 2016
Accepted
22 Jul 2016
First published
22 Jul 2016
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

RSC Adv., 2016,6, 71773-71780

Utilising alternative modifications of α-olefin end groups to synthesise amphiphilic block copolymers

E. L. Malins, C. Waterson and C. R. Becer, RSC Adv., 2016, 6, 71773 DOI: 10.1039/C6RA15346A

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements