Issue 4, 2018

Synthesis of functional catechols as monomers of mussel-inspired biomimetic polymers

Abstract

Catechol-containing polymers have attracted much attention in recent years because of their versatile mussel-inspired adhesive function. We report herein the facile synthesis of 4-/3-substituted catechols using the Mannich reaction of catechol with formaldehyde and secondary amines. The reaction proceeds smoothly in water without any catalyst. Separation of the desired products is important for the success of this methodology, and was achieved by a pH-controlled solvent extraction and recrystallization process. The synthesized functional catechols not only exhibited dopamine-like oxidative cross-linking, but also possessed functional groups that are useful for the synthesis of catechol-containing polymers. As a proof-of-concept application, two functional catechols, one bearing monohydroxyl and the other bearing dihydroxyl groups at the 4-aminomethyl substituent, were incorporated into polyacrylate and polyurethane backbones, respectively, endowing these polymers with excellent coatability on various surfaces.

Graphical abstract: Synthesis of functional catechols as monomers of mussel-inspired biomimetic polymers

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
03 Nov 2017
Accepted
19 Jan 2018
First published
19 Jan 2018

Green Chem., 2018,20, 912-920

Synthesis of functional catechols as monomers of mussel-inspired biomimetic polymers

J. Duan, W. Wu, Z. Wei, D. Zhu, H. Tu and A. Zhang, Green Chem., 2018, 20, 912 DOI: 10.1039/C7GC03323K

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