Synthesis of chromo‐ and fluorogenic poly(ortho‐diaminophenylene) chemosensors for fluoride anion

Two new poly(ortho‐diaminophenylene) derivatives containing fluorene and/or quinoxaline moieties per repeat unit in the main chain were synthesized via Suzuki coupling reaction followed by reduction process. The synthesized polymers were characterized and explored as colorimetric and fluorometric anion‐sensing materials. The polymers in dilute tetrahydrofuran (THF) solution emitted green light (about 530 nm) in their precursor benzothiadiazole forms and blue to green light (477–523 nm) in their reduced forms. The color of polymer solution was dramatically altered upon addition of fluoride anion without noticeable absorption change in UV–vis spectrum. The fluorescence was ratiometrically quenched with a linear relationship between fluorescence intensity and fluoride anion concentration implying static quenching mechanism could be applied judging from the maintenance of constant fluorescence lifetime with variable fluoride anion concentration. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 1546–1556, 2007     

Intramolecular cyclization assistance for fast degradation of ornithine‐based poly(ester amide)s

Inspired by the spontaneous cyclization of ornithine in peptides, polyesters containing protected ornithine (Orn) side chains along the backbone were synthesized and shown to degrade rapidly upon deprotection through intramolecular cyclization. A new ornithine‐based poly(ester amide) PEA 1 and a lysine‐based control PEA 2, both bearing the light‐sensitive protecting group o‐nitrobenzyl alcohol (ONB), were synthesized. Tert‐butyl carbamate (Boc)‐protected versions 1‐Boc and 2‐Boc were also synthesized for proof of concept. GPC confirmed that 1‐Boc degrades over 40 times faster than 2‐Boc following deprotection into the designed intramolecular cyclization products. Finally, TEM visualization of particles made from 1 encapsulating iron oxide nanoparticles reveals complete disruption of nanoparticles and release of payload within a day upon UV irradiation. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013 , 51, 3783–3790     

Synthesis and characterization of thermoresponsive polymers containing reduction‐sensitive disulfide linkage

A novel class of thermoresponsive and reduction‐sensitive polymer, p(PEG‐MEMA‐co‐Boc‐Cyst‐MMAm), containing disulfide linkages and removable hydrophobic tert‐butyloxycarbonyl side chains was synthesized. The cloud points (CP) of p(PEG‐MEMA‐co‐Boc‐Cyst‐MMAm) in water determined by UV/VIS spectrometer were between 20 °C and 57 °C, which shows that the CP can be tuned by adjusting the copolymer composition. Moreover, the thermosensitive polymers p(PEG‐MEMA‐co‐Boc‐Cyst‐MMAm) formed stable nanoparticles in neutral aqueous medium, but rapidly destabilized in an reductive environment mimicking the intracellular space making them suitable for cytoplasmic drug delivery. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 5989–5997, 2009     

Synthesis of ABCD‐type miktoarm star copolymers and transformation into zwitterionic star copolymers

ABCD‐type 4‐miktoarm star copolymers of styrene (St), α‐methylstyrene (αMSt), tert‐butyl methacrylate (tBuMA), and 4‐vinylpyridine (4VP) were synthesized via anionic polymerization using 1,3‐bis(1‐phenylvinyl)benzene (m‐DDPE) as the linking molecule. The synthetic route was rationally designed with respect to the reactivity of individual propagating anion towards the double bond of m‐DDPE. Thus the synthesis includes several consecutive key reactions, for example, the monoaddition of polystyryllithium towards m‐DDPE, the polymerization of tBuMA initiated by the resulting monoadduct to produce a diblock macromonomer, the coupling of the macromonomer with poly(α‐methylstyryl)lithium to form a 3‐arm star anion, and the polymerization of 4‐vinylpyridine initiated by the star anion. These reactions were conducted either in a one‐pot process, in which the diblock macromonomer was in situ coupled with poly(α‐methylstyryl)lithium, or in a batch polymerization process, in which the same diblock macromonomer was separated. The final product was hydrolyzed to produce a zwitterionic miktoarm star copolymer, which was soluble at lower pH but insoluble in neutral and basic solution. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 4818–4828, 2007     

Photosensitive polybenzoxazole based on a poly(o‐hydroxy amide), a dissolution inhibitor,and a photoacid generator

A positive‐type photosensitive polybenzoxazole (PSPBO), based on a poly(o‐hydroxy amide) (PHA), the dissolution inhibitor (DI) 9,9‐bis(4‐tert‐butoxycarbonyloxyphenyl)fluorene (t‐Boc BHF), and the photoacid generator (5‐propylsulfonyloxyimino‐5H‐thiophene‐2‐ylidene)‐(2‐methylphenyl)acetonitrile (PTMA), was developed. Several new tert‐butoxycarbonylated compounds as DIs for PSPBOs were prepared from phenolic compounds having a cardolike structure with di‐tert‐butyl dicarbonate in the presence of 4‐dimethylaminopyridine. Among them, t‐Boc BHF and 5,5′,6,6′‐tetra(tert‐butoxycarbonyl)‐3,3,3′,3′‐tetramethyl‐1,1′‐spirobiindane acted as excellent DIs, giving a large dissolution contrast between the exposed and unexposed areas in a 2.38 wt % tetramethylammonium hydroxide solution (TMAHaq)/5 wt % iso‐propanol (i‐PrOH). The dissolution behavior of this PSPBO system was studied in relation to the PTMA and t‐Boc BHF loadings and postexposure baking temperature. A PSPBO consisting of PHA (77 wt %), t‐Boc BHF (20 wt %), and PTMA (3 wt %) exhibited a sensitivity of 34 mJ/cm² and a contrast of 5.8 when exposed to 365‐nm light (i‐line) and developed with an aqueous alkaline developer, 2.38 wt % TMAHaq/5 wt % i‐PrOH. A clear, positive image with 6‐μm features and a 10‐μm‐thick pattern with high sensitivity and contrast was produced by contact printing and converted into polybenzoxazole patterns upon heating at 350 °C for 1 h. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 661–668, 2007     

Synthesis of ABCD 4‐Miktoarm star‐shaped quarterpolymers by combination of the “click” chemistry with multiple polymerization mechanism

Well‐defined ABCD 4‐Miktoarm star‐shaped quarterpolymers of [poly(styrene)‐poly(tert‐butyl acrylate)‐poly(ethylene oxide)‐poly(isoprene)] [star(PS‐PtBA‐PEO‐PI)] were successfully synthesized by the combination of the “click” chemistry and multiple polymerization mechanism. First, the poly(styryl)lithium (PS^?Li⁺) and the poly(isoprene)lithium (PI^?Li⁺) were capped by ethoxyethyl glycidyl ether (EEGE) to form the PS and PI with both an active ω‐hydroxyl group and an ω′‐ethoxyethyl‐protected hydroxyl group, respectively. After these two hydroxyl groups were selectively modified to propargyl and 2‐bromoisobutyryl group for PS, the resulted PS was used as macroinitiator for ATRP of tBA monomer and the diblock copolymer PS‐b‐PtBA with a propargyl group at the junction point was achieved. Then, using the functionalized PI as macroinitiator for ROP of EO monomer and bromoethane as blocking agent, the diblock copolymer PI‐b‐PEO with a protected hydroxyl group at the conjunction point was synthesized. After the hydrolysis, the recovered hydroxyl group of PI‐b‐PEO was modified to bromoacetyl and then azide group successively. Finally, the “click” chemistry between them was proceeded smoothly. The obtained star‐shaped quarterpolymers and intermediates were characterized by ¹H NMR, FT‐IR, and SEC in detail. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 2154–2166, 2008     

Free radical and thermal curing of terpyridine‐modified terpolymers

Terpolymers bearing terpyridine as well as (meth)acrylates as free radical curable groups (UV‐curing) or hydroxyl groups (thermal curing with bis‐isocyanates) were synthesized and characterized using ¹H NMR, IR and UV‐vis spectroscopy as well as GPC. Subsequently, the ability of covalent crosslinking via the UV‐initiated polymerization of the acrylate groups was investigated. Moreover, the thermal covalent crosslinking via the reaction of hydroxyl functionalized terpolymer and bis‐isocyanate compounds could be successfully achieved. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 4028–4035, 2004     

Synthesis and characterization of novel fluoride‐releasing monomers. II. Dimethacrylates containing bis(aminodiacetic acid) and their ternary zirconium fluoride complexes

Novel dimethacrylate monomers containing bis(aminodiacetic acid) chelating ligands with or without additional hydroxyl groups were synthesized, starting from 2,2‐bis(4‐hydroxy‐3‐methylphenyl)propane. The structures of the monomers were characterized by electrospray mass spectrometry (ESMS), ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR. The structures and relative stability of fluoride‐releasing monomers containing one or more ternary zirconium fluoride complex moieties were studied by ESMS. The most stable ternary zirconium fluoride complex was in the form of [LZrF]^?, where H₄L is the monomer containing bis(aminodiacetic acid) without additional hydroxyl groups. The synthesized monomer was photopolymerized with camphorquinone and 1‐phenyl‐1,2‐propane‐dione as initiators and N,N‐dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate as the accelerator. The fluoride release, fluoride recharge, compressive strength, and flexure strength were tested on the experimental dental composite containing 13.7 wt % synthesized monomer and three commercial flowable dental composites. The results showed that the experimental composite has significantly higher fluoride release and recharge capabilities than the commercial flowable composites. The compressive strength was comparable to that of the commercial materials. The water sorption and solubility met the requirement of the ISO Specification 4049. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 3153–3166, 2005     

Synthesis of soluble poly(para‐phenylene) with a long polymer chain: Characteristics of regioregular poly(1,4‐phenylene)

Soluble poly(para‐phenylene) having a long polymer chain (more than six repeat units) was synthesized with a tert‐butyl end‐group (t‐PPP) and was found to have improved solubility and excellent optical properties. Poly(1,3‐cyclohexadiene) (PCHD) consisting of only 1,4‐cyclohexadiene (1,4‐CHD) units was synthesized with a tert‐butyl end‐group (t‐PCHD), and completely dehydrogenated to obtain t‐PPP. This end‐group effectively prevented the crystallization of t‐PPP, and polymers containing up to 16 repeat units were soluble in tetrahydrofuran. Soluble t‐PPP obtained had an ability to form a tough thin film prepared by spin‐coating method. Optical analyses of t‐PPP provided strong evidence for a linear polymer chain structure. A block copolymer of t‐PPP and a soluble polyphenylene (PPH) was then synthesized, and the excellent optical properties were retained by this block copolymer along with its solubility. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 5223–5231, 2008     

Synthesis and properties of carbamate‐ and amine‐containing poly(phenylacetylenes)

The 3‐ and 4‐aminophenylacetylenes protected by t‐butoxycarbonyl (t‐Boc) and 9‐fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl (Fmoc) groups ( 3a – 6a ) were synthesized and polymerized using [(nbd)RhCl]₂ ( 1 ) and [(nbd)Rh⁺‐η⁶‐PhB^?Ph₃] ( 2 ) catalysts. The t‐Boc‐containing polymers [poly( 3a ) and poly( 4a )] were obtained in high yield (82–91%). Among the Fmoc‐protected monomers, the para‐derivative polymerized well [poly( 6a ); yield = 85–94%], whereas its meta‐substituted analogue did not afford high molecular weight polymer in good yield [poly( 5a ); yield = 10–15%]. The use of KN(SiMe₃)₂ as a cocatalyst in conjunction with 1 led to a dramatic increase in the molecular weight of the polymers. The acid‐ and base‐catalyzed removal of the t‐Boc and the Fmoc groups, respectively, generated primary amine‐containing polymers [poly( 3b )–poly( 6b )] which cannot be obtained directly by the polymerization of the corresponding monomers. The solubility characteristics of the polymers bearing protected amino groups were quite different from those of the unprotected ones, the former being soluble in polar solvents, whereas the latter displayed poor solubility even in polar protic or highly polar aprotic solvents. The attempts to accomplish the free‐standing membrane fabrication by solution casting were successful only for poly( 3a ), and an augmentation in the gas permeability and CO₂/N₂ permselectivity was discerned in comparison with the unsubstituted poly(phenylacetylene) and poly(m‐t‐butyldimethylsiloxyphenylacetylene). © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 1853–1863, 2009     

Aromatic oxadiazole‐based conjugated polymers with excited‐state intramolecular proton transfer: Their synthesis and sensing ability for explosive nitroaromatic compounds

Aromatic polyoxadiazole derivatives containing 9,9′‐dioctylfluorene were successfully synthesized via the Suzuki coupling reaction. The oxadiazole moiety in the polymer backbone was linked with the bis(hydroxyphenyl) group in its 2‐position to exhibit a large Stokes shift in the emission spectrum due to the excited‐state intramolecular proton transfer. To prepare the polymer via the Suzuki cross‐coupling reaction, the hydroxyl group in the monomer was protected with the t‐butoxycarbonyl group before polymerization and removed after polymerization to a desirable extent. The polymer with the free hydroxyl group showed a considerable sensitivity for nitroaromatic compounds, exhibiting fluorescence quenching in a chloroform solution. The interaction between the electron‐donating OH group and electron‐deficient nitroaromatic compounds seemed to play a decisive role in fluorescence quenching. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2059–2068, 2006     

Chiral sensing of Eu(III)‐containing achiral polymer complex from chiral amino acids coordination induction

The β‐diketonate‐based achiral polymer P‐1 could be synthesized by the polymerization of 3,7‐dibromo‐2,8‐dimethoxy‐5,5‐dioctyl‐5H‐dibenzo[b,d]silole ( M1 ) with (Z)?1,3‐bis(4‐ethynylphenyl)?3‐hydroxyprop‐en‐1‐one ( M2 ) via typical Sonogashira coupling reaction. The β‐diketonate unit in the main chain backbone of P‐1 can further coordinate with Eu(TTA)_x [TTA^? = 4,4,4‐trifluoro‐1‐(thiophen‐2‐yl)butane‐1,3‐dionate anion, X = 1, 2, 3] to afford corresponding Eu(III)‐containing polymer complexes. The resulting achiral polymer complex P‐2 (X = 2) can exhibit strong circular dichroism (CD) response toward both N‐Boc‐l and d‐ proline enantiomers. The CD signal was preliminarily attributed to coordination induction between chiral N‐Boc‐proline and the Eu(III) complex moiety. The linear regression analysis of CD sensing shows a good agreement between the magnitude of molar ellipticity and concentration of chiral N‐Boc‐l or d‐ proline, which indicates this kind Eu(III)‐containing achiral polymer complex can be used as a chiral probe for enantioselective recognition of N‐Boc‐l or d‐ proline enantiomers based on Cotton effect of CD spectra. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 3080–3086     

Investigation of thiol‐ene addition reaction on poly(isoprene) under UV irradiation: Synthesis of graft copolymers with “V”‐shaped side chains

Poly(isoprene) (PI) with pendant functional groups was successfully synthesized by thiol‐ene addition reaction under 365 nm UV irradiation, and the functionalized PI was further modified and used to prepare graft copolymers with “V”‐shaped side chains. First, the pendant ? SCH₂CH(OH)CH₂OH groups were introduced to PI by thiol‐ene addition reaction between 1‐thioglycerol and double bonds, and the results showed that the addition reaction carried out only on double bonds of 1,2‐addition isoprene units. After the esterification of hydroxyl groups by 2‐bromoisobutyryl bromide, the forming macroinitiator was used to initiate the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of styrene (St) and tert‐butyl acrylate (tBA), and the graft copolymers PI‐g‐PS ₂ and PI‐g‐PtBA ₂ or PI‐g‐PAA ₂ (by hydrolysis of PI‐g‐PtBA ₂) were obtained, respectively. It was confirmed that the graft density of side chains on PI main chains could be easily controlled by variation of the contents of modified 1,2‐addition isoprene units on PI. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 3797–3806, 2010     

Controlled grafting of ethyl cellulose with azobenzene‐containing polymethacrylates via atom transfer radical polymerization

Graft copolymers of ethyl cellulose with azobenzene‐containing polymethacrylates were synthesized through atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The residual hydroxyl groups on ethyl cellulose were first esterified with 2‐bromoisobutyryl bromide to yield 2‐bromoisobutyryloxy groups, which was then used to initiate the polymerization of 6‐[4‐(4‐methoxyphenylazo)phenoxy]hexyl methacrylate (MMAzo) in the presence of CuBr/N,N,N′,N″,N″‐pentamethylenetriamine (PMDETA) as catalyst and anisole as solvent. The graft copolymers were characterized by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and ¹H‐NMR. The molecular weights of the graft copolymers increased relatively to the macroinitiator, and the polydispersities were narrow. The thermal and liquid crystalline property of the graft copolymers were investigated by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and polarizing optical microscope (POM). Photoresponsive property was studied under the irradiation of UV–vis light in THF solution. The graft copolymers have potential applications, including sensors and optical materials. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 1653–1660, 2007     

Reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer polymerization of methacrylates containing hole‐ or electron‐transporting groups

The controlled/living radical polymerization of 2‐(N‐carbazolyl)ethyl methacrylate (CzEMA) and 4‐(5‐(4‐tert‐butylphenyl‐1,3,4‐oxadiazol‐2‐yl)phenyl) methacrylate (t‐Bu‐OxaMA) via reversible addition‐fragmentation chain transfer polymerization has been studied. Functional polymers with hole‐ or electron‐transfer ability were synthesized with cumyl dithiobenzoate as a chain transfer agent (CTA) and AIBN as an initiator in a benzene solution. Good control of the polymerization was confirmed by the linear increase in the molecular weight (MW) with the conversion. The dependence of MW and polydispersity index (PDI) of the resulting polymers on the molar ratio of monomer to CTA, monomer concentration, and molar ratio of CTA to initiator has also been investigated. The MW and PDI of the resulting polymers were well controlled as being revealed by GPC measurements. The resulting polymers were further characterized by NMR, UV‐vis spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The polymers functionalized with carbazole group or 1,3,4‐oxadiazole group exhibited good thermal stability, with an onset decomposition temperature of about 305 and 323 °C, respectively, as determined by thermogravimetric analysis. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 242–252, 2007     

Synthesis of twin‐tail tadpole‐shaped (cyclic polystyrene)‐ block‐[linear poly (tert‐butyl acrylate)]2 by combination of glaser coupling reaction with living anionic polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization

The twin‐tail tadpole‐shaped (cyclic polystyrene)‐block‐[linear poly (tert‐butyl acrylate)]₂ [(c‐PS)‐b‐(l‐PtBA)₂] was synthesized by combination of Glaser coupling reaction with atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and living anionic polymerization (LAP). First, the telechelic PS with an active and an ethoxyethyl‐protected hydroxyl groups at both ends was prepared by LAP of St monomers using lithium naphthalenide as initiator and terminated by 1‐ethoxyethyl glycidyl ether. And the alkyne groups were introduced onto each PS end by selectively reaction of active hydroxy group with propargyl bromide in NaH/tetrahydrofuran (THF) system. Then, the intramolecular cyclization was carried out by Glaser coupling reaction in pyridine/Cu(I)Br system in air atmosphere. Finally, the macroinitiator of c‐PS with two bromine groups at the junction point was synthesized via the cleavage of ethoxyethyl group and the subsequent esterification of the deprotected hydroxyl groups with 2‐bromoisobutyryl bromide. The copolymer of (c‐PS)‐b‐(l‐PtBA)₂ was obtained by ATRP of tBA monomers, and the PtBA segment was also hydrolyzed for (cyclic polystyrene)‐block‐(linear polyacrylic acid)₂ [(c‐PS)‐b‐(l‐PAA)₂]. The target copolymers and all intermediates were well characterized by GPC, MALDI‐TOF MS, and ¹H NMR in detail. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Synthesis and characterization of tris(2,2′‐bipyridine)ruthenium‐cored star‐shaped polymers via RAFT polymerization

A new bipyridine‐functionalized dithioester was synthesized and further used as a RAFT agent in RAFT polymerization of styrene and N‐isopropylacrylamide. Kinetics analysis indicates that it is an efficient chain transfer agent for RAFT polymerization of the two monomers which produce polystyrene and poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) polymers with predetermined molecular weights and low polydispersities in addition to the end functionality of bipyridine. The bipyridine end‐functionalized polymers were further used as macroligands for the preparation of star‐shaped metallopolymers. Hydrophobic polystyrene macroligand combined with hydrophiphilic poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) was complexed with ruthenium ions to produce amphiphilic ruthenium‐cored star‐shaped metallopolymers. The structures of these synthesized metallopolymers were further elucidated by UV–vis, fluorescence, size exclusion chromatography (SEC), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) as well as NMR techniques. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 4225–4239, 2007     

Encapsulation and release by star‐shaped block copolymers as unimolecular nanocontainers

A five‐arm star‐shaped poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with terminal bromide groups was used as a macroinitiator for the atom transfer radical polymerization of tert‐butyl acrylate (tBA), resulting in five‐arm star‐shaped poly(ethylene oxide)‐block‐poly(tert‐butyl acrylate) block copolymers. The polymerization proceeded in a controlled way using a copper(I)bromide/pentamethyl diethylenetriamine catalytic system in acetonitrile as solvent. The hydrolysis of the tBA blocks of the amphiphilic star‐shaped PEO‐b‐PtBA block copolymer resulted in dihydrophilic star structures. The encapsulation of the star‐block copolymers and their release properties in acid environment have been followed by UV‐spectroscopy and color changes, using the dye methyl orange as a hydrophilic guest molecule. Characterization of the structures has been done by ¹H NMR, size exclusion chromatography, MALDI‐TOF, and differential scanning calorimetry. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 650–660, 2008     

ATRP of methyl methacrylate using a novel binol ester‐based bifunctional initiator

Novel bifunctional initiators [1,1′‐Bi‐2‐naphthol bis(2‐bromo‐2‐methylpropionate); (R)‐, (S)‐, and racemic‐] were synthesized from the esterification of 1,1′‐bi‐2‐naphthol and used as initiators in atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) in conjunction with N,N,N′,N′,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine (PMDETA), and copper (I) bromide or copper (I) chloride. The initiators synthesized were completely characterized by UV, FTIR, NMR, and Mass spectroscopies. A detailed investigation of the ATRP of methyl methacrylate (MMA) with the bifunctional initiators (BBiBN) along with CuBr or CuCl/PMDETA catalyst system in anisole was carried out at 30 °C. Thus, MMA polymerization is shown to proceed with first‐order kinetics, with predicted molecular weight, and narrow polydispersity indices. The ATRP of glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) and tert‐butyl acrylate (tBA) were also performed with BBiBN initiator in conjunction with CuBr/PMDETA catalyst system. The polymerization of GMA was carried out at 30 °C, but tBA was polymerized at 60 °C. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC), FTIR, NMR, UV spectroscopies, and TGA were used for the characterization of the polymers synthesized. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 902–915, 2004     

Preparation of H‐shaped ABCAB terpolymers by atom transfer radical coupling

H‐shaped ABCAB terpolymers composed of polystyrene (PS) (A), poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) (B), and poly(tert‐butyl acrylate) (PtBA) (C) were prepared by atom transfer radical coupling reaction using ABC star terpolymers as precursors, CuBr and N,N,N′,N″,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine (PMDETA) as catalysts, and nanosize copper as the reducing agent. The synthesis of 3‐miktoarm star terpolymer PS‐PEO‐(PtBA‐Br) involved following steps: (1) the preparation of PS with an active and an ethoxyethyl‐ptotected hydroxyl group at the same end; (2) the preparation of diblock copolymer PS‐b‐PEO with ethoxyethyl‐protected group at the junction point through the ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of EO; (3) after de‐protection of ethoxyethyl group and further modification of hydroxyl group, tBA was polymerized by atom transfer radical polymerization using PS‐b‐PEO with 2‐bromoisobutyryl functional group as macroinitiator. The H‐shaped terpolymer could be successfully formed by atom transfer radical coupling reaction in the presence of small quantity of styrene, CuBr/PMDETA, and Cu at 90 °C. The copolymers were characterized by SEC, ¹H NMR, and FTIR in detail. The optimized coupling temperature is 90 °C. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 59–68, 2009