Synthesis of well‐defined aromatic polyesters by chain‐growth polycondensation under suppression of transesterification

For the synthesis of aromatic polyesters with defined molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distributions (MWDs), we investigated the chain‐growth polycondensation of active amide derivatives of 4‐hydroxybenzoic acid, 1a and 1b , having an octyl or 4,7‐dioxaoctyl side chain, respectively. To suppress the transesterification of the polymer backbone with the monomer, the polymerization of 1 was carried out in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at −30 °C in the presence of initiator 2 and Et₃SiH/CsF/18‐crown‐6, which generated a hydride ion as a base in situ. The number‐average molecular weight (M_n) of poly 1a was controlled, and narrow MWDs were maintained, until the [ 1a ]₀/[ 2 ]₀ feed ratio was 14.3 (M_n ≤ 3500), whereas that of poly 1b was controlled until the feed ratio was 30 (M_n ≤ 7250). The difference stemmed from the higher solubility of poly 1b in THF. This chain‐growth polycondensation was applied to the synthesis of a diblock copolyester of 1a and 1b of a defined architecture. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 4109–4117, 2005     

Facile synthesis of poly(l‐tryptophan) through polycondensation of activated urethane derivatives

A facile and phosgene‐free synthetic route to poly(l ‐tryptophan) 2 by the polycondensation of N‐phenoxycarbonyl‐l ‐tryptophan 1 is described. The monomer 1 was synthesized via the carbamylation of tetrabutylammonium salt of L‐tryptophan with diphenyl carbonate. The polycondensation proceeded smoothly at 60 °C in N,N‐dimethylacetamide in the presence of amines (n‐butylamine, diethylamine, and triethylamine) along with the elimination of phenol and carbon dioxide. The structural analysis of the obtained 2 by Matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry revealed that n‐butylamine or diethylamine was successfully incorporated into the chain end of the polypeptide. Furthermore, we have demonstrated the synthesis of a diblock copolymer by utilizing amine‐terminated poly(ethylene glycol) as a source of the polyether segment. The chain length of the polypeptide segment was controlled by varying feed ratio between 1 and the amino group of poly(ethylene glycol). © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013 , 51, 4565–4571     

Synthesis and copolymerization of oligo(lactic acid) derived norbornene macromonomers with amino acid derived norbornene monomer: Formation of the 3D macroporous scaffold

Norbornene macromonomers 2 and 3 bearing 10‐ and 20‐mers of lactide were synthesized by ring‐opening polymerization of lactide using 5‐norbornene‐2, 3‐exo‐exo‐dimethanol as an initiator and DBU as a catalyst. Macromonomers 2 and 3 were copolymerized with amino acid derived norbornene monomer 1 , using the Grubbs 2nd generation ruthenium catalyst. The random and block copolymers with M_n's ranging from 28,000 to 180,000 were obtained almost quantitatively where the M_n's of the block copolymers were higher than those of the random ones. Three‐dimensional macroporous structure polymers with average pore size of 10 µm could be found in poly( 1 ) and the block co‐polymer of 1 and 2 or 1 and 3 at the high ratio of 1 . Meanwhile, poly( 2 ) and poly( 3 ) along with block and random copolymers with low ratio of 1 exhibit much larger pores in the range of 50–300 µm. The porosity increased with increase in the unit ratio of 1 . The compressive strength of the porous structure of poly( 2 ) and poly( 3 ) was improved by the copolymerization with 1 . © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1660–1670     

Syntheses of donor acceptor biobased photocurable water‐soluble resins based on poly‐l‐lysine

We report a new kind of coating using UV waterborne technique with a biobased poly(amino acid) resin. Firstly we performed the thermal polycondensation of l ‐lysine during 15 h at 150 °C to synthesize water‐soluble oligomers of poly‐l ‐lysine (PLL) with 5–6 monomer units. These oligomers were then transformed in mild conditions to give photocurable water‐soluble resins. We grafted on the poly‐l ‐lysine backbone, allyl and maleamic acid functional groups, with a grafting rate close to 65% thanks to allyl glycidyl ether and maleic anhydride respectively. The influence of the reaction time and the reagents ratio on the grafting rate was investigated. Hence, the donor/acceptor photopolymerization of the mixture of allyl ether‐poly‐l ‐lysine (PLL‐g‐AE) with maleamic acid‐poly‐l ‐lysine (PLL‐g‐MA) in aqueous solution gave yellow transparent films. The degree of conversion and other kinetic parameters have been studied and detailed. This work contributes to the development of materials based on renewable resources and cleaner processes. It opens a new pathway to both fundamental and applied‐driven research. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 955–963     

Chain‐growth condensation polymerization approach to synthesis of well‐defined polybenzoxazole: Importance of higher reactivity of 3‐amino‐4‐hydroxybenzoic acid ester compared to 4‐amino‐3‐hydroxybenzoic acid ester

Application of chain‐growth condensation polymerization (CGCP) to obtain well‐defined polybenzoxazole (PBO) was examined. CGCP of both phenyl 3‐{(2‐methoxyethoxy)methoxy (MEM‐oxy)}‐4‐(octylamino)benzoate ( 1b ) (para‐substituted monomer) and phenyl 4‐MEM‐oxy‐3‐(octylamino)benzoate ( 3b ) (meta‐substituted monomer) was examined in the presence of metal disilazide base and phenyl 4‐nitro‐ or methylbenzoate 2 as an initiator. Polymerization of the latter monomer, but not the former, afforded polymer with controlled molecular weight based on the feed ratio of monomer to initiator and with a narrow molecular weight distribution. Accordingly, monomer 3c , in which the octyl group on the amino nitrogen of 3b was replaced with a 4‐(octyloxy)benzyl (OOB) group, was polymerized in the presence of lithium 1,1,1,3,3,3‐hexamethyldisilazide (LiHMDS), phenyl 4‐methylbenzoate ( 2b ), and LiCl in THF at 0 °C to yield poly 3c with well‐defined molecular weight (M_n = 4520–9080) and low polydispersity (M_w/M_n ≤ 1.11). Treatment of poly 3c with trifluoroacetic acid simultaneously removed the MEM and OOB groups, affording poly(o‐hydroxyamide) (poly 4 ) without scission of the amide linkages. Cyclodehydration of poly 4 proceeded at 350 °C to yield PBO (poly 5 ), which was insoluble in organic solvents and acids. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 1730–1736     

Facile synthesis of polyester dendrimer via combining thio‐bromo “Click” chemistry and ATNRC

This article reports on developing an efficient synthesis approach to aliphatic polyester dendrimer, poly(thioglycerol‐2‐propionate) (PTP), by combination of thio‐bromo “Click” chemistry with atom transfer nitroxide radical coupling (ATNRC). Through the one‐pot two‐step method, linear polystyrene with hydroxyl end groups (l‐PS‐2OH) was obtained by first atom transfer radical polymerization of styrene and following termination using 4‐(2,3‐dihydroxypropoxy)‐TEMPO (DHP‐TEMPO) to capture the PS macroradicals via ATNRC method. Using l‐PS‐2OH as support, the dendritic repeating units divergently were grown from the hydroxyl end groups via esterification and thio‐bromo “Click” reaction two‐step process. In every generation, the resulting intermediates l‐PS‐d‐PTP (G1‐G4) can be easily isolated from the excessive unreacted monomers by simple precipitation in ethanol without help of time, labor and solvent consuming column chromatographic purification. At last, cleavage of the alkoxyamine group between the PS support and dendrimer at elevated temperature (125 °C) provided the targeted polyester dendrimer PTP up to the fourth generation. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1762–1768     

A variety of poly(m-benzamide)s with low polydispersities from inductive effect-assisted chain-growth polycondensation

Chain-growth polycondensation of 3-(alkylamino)benzoic acid alkyl esters 1 was investigated for obtaining poly(m-benzamide)s with defined molecular weights and low polydispersities. Polymerization conditions were first studied to find that ethyl 3-(octylamino)benzoate ( 1b ) polymerized in a chain polymerization manner in the presence of lithium 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexamethyldisilazide (LiHMDS) as a base and phenyl 4-methylbenzoate ( 2b ) as an initiator in THF at 0 °C. The molecular weight of the polymer was controlled by the feed ratio of monomer to initiator. The polymerization of 1c – i with a variety of N-alkyl groups was then carried out under the established conditions to yield well-defined poly(m-benzamide)s, which showed higher solubility than those of the corresponding poly(p-benzamide)s. Furthermore, the 4-octyloxybenzyl group on the amide nitrogen in poly 1i was removed by treatment with trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) to give N-unsubstituted poly(m-benzamide) (poly 1j ) with a low polydispersity, which is soluble in DMAc and DMSO, contrary to the para-substituted counterpart. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 4990–5003, 2006     

Photoactive,liquid‐crystalline,hyperbranched benzylidene polyesters: Synthesis and characterization

A novel photoactive, liquid‐crystalline, hyperbranched benzylidene polyester (PAHBP) was synthesized from a dilute solution of an A₂ photoactive monomer [bis(4‐hydroxybenzylidene)‐4‐phenyl cyclohexanone] and a B₃ monomer (1,3,5‐benzene tricarboxylic acid chloride) by the solution polycondensation method in the presence of pyridine as a condensing agent. PAHBP was thoroughly characterized by Fourier transform infrared, ¹H and ¹³C NMR, ultraviolet–visible spectrometry, and gel permeation chromatography. The inherent viscosity of the polymer was 0.35 dL/g in tetrahydrofuran. The degree of branching was 0.53, which confirmed the branched architecture of the polymer. Furthermore, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and polarized optical microscopy were used to examine the thermal stability and thermotropic liquid‐crystalline properties of the hyperbranched polyester. The polymer exhibited a nematic mesophase over a wide range of temperatures. The photoreactivity of PAHBP was studied by photolysis under ultraviolet light. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 53–61, 2006     

Syntheses and properties of hyperbranched polybenzoxazole by thermal cyclodehydration of hyperbranched poly[o‐(t‐butoxycarbonyl)amide] via A2 + B3 approach

The syntheses and properties of hyperbranched poly(o‐hydroxyamide) [poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP], poly[o‐(t‐butoxycarbonyl)amide] [poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP‐t‐BOC], and polybenzoxazole [poly(HAB‐cycloBCC)] were examined. Poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP was obtained from the polycondensation reaction of 3,3‐dihydroxy‐4,4′‐diaminobiphenyl (HAB) as an A₂‐monomer and 1,3,5‐benzenetricarboxylchloride (BCC) as a B₃‐monomer with 2‐amino‐4‐t‐butylphenol (ABP) in NMP in the presence of pyridine for 24 h. The reaction of poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP and di‐t‐buthylcarbonate (DiBOC) was performed to obtain the corresponding poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP‐t‐BOC with pendant t‐BOC groups. The thermal cyclodehydration of poly(HAB‐BCC)‐ABP‐t‐BOC was carried out in the film sate at 400 °C, affording the poly(HAB‐cyclo‐BCC) in quantitative yield. Furthermore, the solubilities and thermal properties of these polymers were examined. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3640–3649, 2006     

Solvent effect on chain‐growth polycondensation for aromatic polyethers

The polycondensation of potassium 5‐cyano‐4‐fluoro‐2‐octylphenolate ( 1b ) was carried out in the presence of 4‐fluoro‐4′‐trifluoromethylbenzophenone ( 2 ) as an initiator for chain‐growth polycondensation in a variety of solvents, and the chain‐growth nature of this polymerization was found to depend on the kind of solvent. In the polycondensation of 1b with 2 in sulfolane at 150 °C, the MALDI‐TOF mass spectra of poly 1b showed only one series of peaks due to poly 1b attached with the initiator 2 unit, and the ¹⁹F NMR spectra indicated that the ratios of the initiator unit to the end group were 1.0. Therefore, chain‐growth polycondensation occured in this condition. On the other hand, the polycondensation in THF, quinoline, DMI, tetraglyme at 150 °C gave poly 1b with broad molecular weight distributions, and the MALDI‐TOF mass spectra showed two series of peaks resulting from both chain‐growth and step‐growth polycondensations. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 1198–1207, 2004     

Synthesis of hyperbranched polyacetals via an + b2‐type polyaddition (n = 3, 8, 18, and 21): Candidate resists for extreme ultraviolet lithography

Polyaddition (A_n + B₂) reactions of 1,1,1‐tris(4‐hydoxyphenyl) ethane (THPE; A₃‐type monomer), calix[4]resorcinarene (CRA[4]; A₈‐type monomer), α‐cyclodextrin (α‐CD; A₁₈‐type monomer), and β‐cyclodextrin (β‐CD; A₂₁‐type monomer) with 1,4‐bis(4‐vinyloxy)cyclohexane (BVOC; B₂‐type monomer) afforded corresponding soluble hyperbranched polyacetals. The physical properties, including solubility, thermal stability, and film‐forming ability, the ultraviolet‐induced degradation reactivity, and the solubility‐switch in an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) exposure tool indicated that poly(THPE‐co‐BVOC) and poly(CRA[4]‐co‐BVOC) are candidate next‐generation photo‐resists. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2343–2350     

Membranes from poly(aryl ether)‐based ionomers containing multiblock segments of randomly distributed nanoclusters of 18 sulfonic acid groups

Multiblock copolymers 1a (M_n = 31,500–47,400) of sulfonated poly(aryl ether)s were synthesized by polycondensation of 4,4′‐difluorobenzophenone (DFBP), bis(4‐hydroxyphenyl)sulfone (BHPS), and an hydroxy‐terminated sulfonated oligomer, which was synthesized from DFBP and 2,2′,3,3′,5,5′‐hexaphenyl‐4,4′‐dihydroxybiphenyl a . The copolymerization of trimeric monomer b with DFBP and BHPS gave a series of copolymers 1b (M_n = 26,200–45,900). The copolymers were then sulfonated with chlorosulfonic acid to give ionomers 3a with hydrophilic multiblock segments and ionomers 3b with segments containing clusters of 18 sulfonic acid groups. The proton exchange membranes cast from ionomers 3a and 3b were characterized with regard to thermal stability, water uptake, proton conductivity, and morphology. Transmission electron microscopy images of 3a‐1 and 3b‐1 revealed a phase separation similar to that of Nafion that may explain their higher proton conductivities compared with randomly sulfonated copolymers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 4762–4773, 2009     

Synthesis and characterization of novel,optically active poly(amide‐imide)s from N,N′‐(4,4′‐sulfonediphthaloyl)‐bis‐L‐phenylalanine diacid chloride and aromatic diamines under microwave irradiation

3,3′,4,4′‐Diphenylsulfonetetracarboxylic dianhydride was reacted with L ‐phenylalanine in acetic acid, and the resulting imide acid ( 3 ) was obtained in high yield. The diacid chloride ( 4 ) was obtained from its diacid derivative ( 3 ) by reaction with thionyl chloride. The polycondensation reaction of 4 with several aromatic diamines such as 4,4′‐sulfonyldianiline, 4,4′‐diaminodiphenyl methane, 4,4′‐diaminodiphenylether, p‐phenylenediamine, m‐phenylenediamine, 2,4‐diaminotoluene, and 1,5‐diaminonaphthalene was developed with a domestic microwave oven in the presence of trimethylsilyl chloride and a small amount of a polar organic medium such as o‐cresol. The polymerization reactions were also performed with two other methods: low‐temperature solution polycondensation in the presence of trimethylsilyl chloride and reflux conditions. A series of optically active poly(amide‐imide)s with moderate inherent viscosities of 0.21–0.42 dL/g were obtained in high yield. All of the aforementioned polymers were fully characterized by IR, ¹H NMR elemental analyses, and specific rotation techniques. Some structural characterizations and physical properties of these optically active poly(amide‐imide) s are reported. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 3974–3988, 2003     

Synthesis of optically active conjugated polymers containing platinum in the main chain: Control of the higher‐order structures by substituents and solvents

The Sonogashira–Hagihara coupling polymerization of d ‐hydroxyphenylglycine‐derived diiodo monomers 1–4 and platinum‐containing diethynyl monomer 5 gave the corresponding polymers [poly( 1–5 )–( 2–5 )] with number‐average molecular weights of 19,000–25,000 quantitatively. The polymers were soluble in CHCl₃, CH₂Cl₂, THF, and DMF. CD and UV–vis spectroscopic analysis revealed that amide‐substituted polymers [poly( 1–5 ) and poly( 2–5 )] formed chiral higher‐order structures in solution, while ester‐substituted polymers [poly( 3–5 ) and poly( 4–5 )] did not. Poly( 1–5 ) formed one‐handed helices in THF/toluene mixtures, while it formed chiral aggregates in THF/MeOH mixtures. Poly( 1–5 ) emitted fluorescence with quantum yields ranging from 0.8 to 1.3%. The polymers usually aggregated in the solid state. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2452–2461     

Adding magnetic ionic liquid monomers to the emulsion polymerization tool‐box: Towards polymer latexes and coatings with new properties

Magnetic ionic liquid monomers were synthesized and then polymerized to get magnetic polymer latexes and films. First, a series of 1‐vinyl‐3‐dodecyl‐imidazolium monomers having metal halides counter‐anions such as FeCl₃Br^?, CoCl₂Br^?, and MnCl₂Br^? were synthesized. These ionic liquid monomers were first homopolymerized to lead to magnetic poly(ionic liquids) and characterized. Secondly, magnetic latexes were synthesized by using the magnetic ionic liquids as surfmers (surfactant + monomer) in the emulsion polymerization of methyl methacrylate/n‐butyl acrylate. It was found that the powders obtained by freeze‐drying the latexes presented a paramagnetic behavior with weak antiferromagnetic interactions between the adjacent metal ions. Although the ratio of magnetic ionic liquid/monomer was only 2% these poly(methyl methacrylate‐co‐butyl acrylate) powders and latexes responded to a magnetic field due to the surfmer paramagnetic nature. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 1145–1152     

A convenient room temperature polycondensation toward hyperbranched AB2‐type all‐aromatic polyesters with phenol terminal groups

As a convenient alternative to the classical melt polycondensation the one‐pot solution polycondensation of suitable AB₂ monomers under mild conditions has been successfully adapted to hyperbranched all‐aromatic polyester with phenol terminal groups. The polymerization was performed in solution at room temperature directly using commercially available 3,5‐dihydroxybenzoic acid as monomer and 4‐(dimethylamino) pyridinium 4‐tosylate as catalyst to suppress the formation of N‐acylurea. Different carbodiimides as coupling agents were investigated to find the optimal esterification conditions. The polymers have been characterized extensively and were compared with their well‐known analogs synthesized in melt. The characterization was carried out by NMR spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography, and asymmetric flow‐field flow fractionation as an alternative separation technique for multifunctional polymers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 5158–5168, 2009     

Chain‐growth condensation polymerization of 4‐aminobenzoic acid esters bearing tri(ethylene glycol) side chain with lithium amide base

Chain‐growth condensation polymerization of p‐aminobenzoic acid esters 1 bearing a tri(ethylene glycol) monomethyl ether side chain on the nitrogen atom was investigated by using lithium 1,1,1,3,3,3‐hexamethyldisilazide (LiHMDS) as a base. The methyl ester monomer 1a afforded polymer with low molecular weight and a broad molecular weight distribution, whereas the polymerization of the phenyl ester monomer 1b at ?20 °C yielded polymer with controlled molecular weight (M_n = 2800–13,400) and low polydispersity (M_w/M_n = 1.10–1.15). Block copolymerization of 1b and 4‐(octylamino)benzoic acid methyl ester ( 2 ) was further investigated. We found that block copolymer of poly 1b and poly 2 with defined molecular weight and low polydispersity was obtained when the polymerization of 1b was initiated with equimolar LiHMDS at ?20 °C and continued at ?50 °C, followed by addition of 2 and equimolar LiHMDS at ?10 °C. Spherical aggregates were formed when a solution of poly 1b in THF was dropped on a glass plate and dried at room temperature, although the block copolymer of poly 1b and poly 2 did not afford similar aggregates under the same conditions. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 1357–1363, 2010     

Acid chloride‐functionalized hyperbranched polyester for facile and quantitative chain‐end modification: One‐pot synthesis and structure characterization

Carboxylic acid chloride end‐functionalized all‐aromatic hyperbranched polyesters were prepared from the bulk polycondensation of the AB₂ monomer 5‐(trimethylsiloxy)isophthaloyl dichloride. The acid chloride end functionality of the hyperbranched polyester was modified in situ with methanol and yielded methyl ester ends in a one‐pot process. Chain‐end functionalization and esterification were quantitative according to both potentiometric titration and ¹H NMR analysis. The signals of ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectra of the esterified hyperbranched polyester were fully assigned from model compounds of the focal, linear, dendritic, and terminal units. The degree of branching and molecular weight averages measured by ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy and multidetector size exclusion chromatography increased systematically with increasing polymerization temperatures between 80 and 200 °C. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 2855–2867, 2002     

RAFT polymerization in supercritical carbon dioxide based on an induced precipitation approach: Synthesis of 2‐ethoxyethyl methacrylate/acrylamide block copolymers

A new controlled/living heterogeneous polymerization technique using RAFT in benign supercritical CO₂ is described involving the formation of monomer‐swollen seed particles by precipitation of macroRAFT agent prior to polymerization. Controlled/living character of the induced precipitation is compared with the equivalent solution polymerization. The large scale synthesis of poly(2‐ethoxyethyl methacrylate)‐b‐poly(acrylamides) useful for biomedical applications is made possible with the polymer isolated as powders at high conversions, thus circumventing the requirement for volatile organic solvents. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 2351–2356     

Synthesis and kinetic modeling of biomass‐derived renewable polyesters

The biomass‐derived polyesters poly(1,3‐propylene 2,5‐furandicarboxylate) (PPF), poly(1,3‐propylene succinate) (PPS) and poly(1,3‐propylene 2,5‐furandicarboxylate‐co‐1,3‐propylene succinate) (PPFPS) have been synthesized via a two‐step process involving polycondensation and azeotropic distillation. The kinetic parameters were obtained by fitting the experimental data from a batch polymerization reactor to three different kinetic models for polyesterification reactions. The activation energies of the all monomer systems were obtained by Arrhenius plots. Given the increasing availability of biomass‐derived monomers their use in renewable polyesters as substitutes for fossil fuel derived chemicals becomes a distinct possibility. The kinetic modeling of the uncatalyzed polyesterification reactions will enable further integrative process simulation of the studied bioderived polymers and provide a reference for future practical study or industrial applications of catalyzed polyesterification reactions and other bioderived monomer systems. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Polymer Science Part A: Polymer Chemistry Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 2876–2887