Cyclotrimerization of diisocyanates toward high‐performance networked polymers with rigid isocyanurate structure: Combination of aromatic and aliphatic diisocyanates for tunable flexibility

A series of networked polymers bearing isocyanurate moiety was synthesized by cyclotrimerization of diisocyanates, with employing methylenediphenyl 4,4′‐diisocyanate and 1,6‐hexamethylenediisocyanate (HMDI) in several feed ratios. In spite of the large difference in intrinsic reactivity between these two diisocyanates, their coannulation proceeded efficiently by using sodium p‐toluenesulfinate (pTolSO₂Na) and 1,3‐dimethyl‐2‐imidazolidinone as a catalyst and a solvent, respectively. The resulting networked polymers were transparent and exhibited excellent thermal stability. In addition, HMDI‐rich feed ratios allowed for the formation of networked polymers with increased flexibility. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 2631–2637     

A new room‐temperature liquid,high‐performance tricyanate ester

A new tricyanate ester monomer of a tris(4‐hydroxyphenyl)benzene derivative was synthesized in 6‐steps with a 63% overall yield. The geminal substitution of phenyl rings on ethane, in addition to the creation of a racemic/diastereomeric mixture, resulted in a liquid monomer whereas compounds with similar structure and symmetry have melting points typically over 100 °C. Key properties of the polycyanurate, such as the glass transition temperature and moisture resistance, were positively influenced by the higher crosslink density provided by the monomer. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

Effect of branched alkyl side chains on the performance of thin‐film transistors and photovoltaic cells fabricated with isoindigo‐based conjugated polymers

New isoindigo and di(thienyl)ethylene‐containing π‐extended conjugated polymers with different branched side chains were synthesized to investigate their physical properties and device performance in thin‐film transistors and photovoltaic cells. 11‐Butyltricosane (S3) and 11‐heptyltricosane (S6) groups were used as side‐chain moieties tethered to isoindigo units. The linking groups between the polymer backbone and bifurcation point in the branched side chain differ in the two polymers (i.e., PIDTE‐S3 and PIDTE‐S6 ). The polymers bearing S6 side chains showed much better charge transport behavior than those with S3 side chains. Thermally annealed PIDTE‐S6 film exhibited an outstanding hole mobility of 4.07 cm² V^?1 s^?1 under ambient conditions. Furthermore, bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic cells made from a blend film of PIDTE‐S3 and (6,6)‐phenyl C61‐butyric acid methyl ester demonstrated promising device performance with a power conversion efficiency in the range of 4.9–5.0%. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 2015 , 53, 1226–1234     

A series of new high‐performance materials based on poly[4′‐fluorophenyl‐bis(4‐phenyl)phosphine oxide]

A new series of high‐performance poly(arylene phosphine oxide) (PAPO) materials were synthesized postpolymerization from fluorinated poly(arylene phosphine oxide) (f‐PAPO). The new materials had increased solubility and film‐forming ability over the parent f‐PAPO. With the careful choice of the nucleophile, the thermal stability was also increased. The parent polymer f‐PAPO was synthesized via Ni(0) coupling from aromatic chloride and mesylate monomers. Both monomers were polymerized successfully to create polymers with intrinsic viscosities of 0.235 and 0.123 dL/g, respectively. The higher molecular weight f‐PAPO gave a glass transition of 320 °C and a char yield of 54% at 650 °C in air. The substitution of f‐PAPO via nucleophilic aromatic substitution produced PAPO thermoplastics with significant changes in the properties. The largest increase in the thermal stability relative to f‐PAPO was from 563 to 600 °C 10% weight‐loss values in nitrogen after the displacement of fluoride by 4‐aminophenol, which yielded poly[4‐(4‐aminopheonxyphenyl)bis(4′‐phenyl)phosphine oxide]. Additionally, the char yield increased from 54 to 71% in air at 650 °C. The solubility of the parent polymer was improved after substitution with 3‐tert‐butylphenol, n‐nonylamine, and poly(ethylene glycol)monomethyl ether. All of these became soluble in chloroform, N,N‐dimethylacetamide, and dimethyl sulfoxide. Copolymers were synthesized with 2,5‐dichloro‐4′‐fluorobenzophenone to improve the solubility of f‐PAPO without the loss of thermal stability. These copolymers also underwent nucleophilic aromatic substitution to create an epoxy cure agent that was used with the DEN 431 resin. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 2277–2287, 2003     

Bio‐based high‐performance waterborne hyperbranched polyurethane thermoset

Tannic‐acid‐based low volatile organic compound‐containing waterborne hyperbranched polyurethane was prepared. In order to improve the performance, it was modified in an aqueous medium using a glycerol‐based hyperbranched epoxy and vegetable‐oil‐based poly(amido amine) at different wt%. The combined system was cross‐linked by heating at 100°C for 45 min. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and swelling study were used to confirm the curing. A dose‐dependent improvement of properties was witnessed for the thermoset. Thermoset with 30 wt% epoxy showed excellent improvements in mechanical properties like tensile strength (~3.4 fold), scratch hardness (~2 fold), impact resistance (~1.3 fold), and toughness (~1.7 fold). Thermogravimetric analysis revealed enhancement of thermal properties (maximum 70°C increment of degradation temperature and 8°C increment of T_g). The modified system showed better chemical and water resistance compared with the neat polyurethane. Biodegradation study was carried out by broth culture method using Pseudomonas aeruginosa as the test organism. An adequate biodegradation was witnessed, as evidenced by weight loss profile, bacterial growth curve, and scanning electron microscope images. The work showed the way to develop environmentally benign waterborne polyurethane as a high‐performance material by incorporating a reactive modifier into the polymer network. Use of benign solvent and bio‐based materials as well as profound biodegradability justified eco‐friendliness and sustainability of the modified system. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

VinaMPI: Facilitating multiple receptor high‐throughput virtual docking on high‐performance computers

The program VinaMPI has been developed to enable massively large virtual drug screens on leadership‐class computing resources, using a large number of cores to decrease the time‐to‐completion of the screen. VinaMPI is a massively parallel Message Passing Interface (MPI) program based on the multithreaded virtual docking program AutodockVina, and is used to distribute tasks while multithreading is used to speed‐up individual docking tasks. VinaMPI uses a distribution scheme in which tasks are evenly distributed to the workers based on the complexity of each task, as defined by the number of rotatable bonds in each chemical compound investigated. VinaMPI efficiently handles multiple proteins in a ligand screen, allowing for high‐throughput inverse docking that presents new opportunities for improving the efficiency of the drug discovery pipeline. VinaMPI successfully ran on 84,672 cores with a continual decrease in job completion time with increasing core count. The ratio of the number of tasks in a screening to the number of workers should be at least around 100 in order to have a good load balance and an optimal job completion time. The code is freely available and downloadable. Instructions for downloading and using the code are provided in the Supporting Information. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Facile preparation of novel epoxy curing agents and their high‐performance thermosets

Two flame‐retardant epoxy curing agents, 9,10‐dihydro‐9‐oxa‐10‐phosphaphenanthrene‐10‐yl‐tris(4‐hydroxyphenyl)methane (1) and 9,10‐dihydro‐9‐oxa‐10‐phosphaphenanthrene‐10‐yl‐ (4‐aminophenyl)‐bis(4‐hydroxyphenyl)methane (2), were prepared by a facile, economic, one‐pot procedure. The structures of the curing agents were confirmed by IR, high‐resolution mass, 1‐D, and 2‐D NMR spectra. A reaction mechanism was proposed for the preparation, and the effect of electron withdrawing/donating effects on the stabilization of the carbocation was discussed. (1‐2) served as curing agents for diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA), dicyclopentadiene epoxy (HP‐7200), and cresol novolac epoxy (CNE). Properties such as glass transition temperature, coefficient of thermal expansion, thermal decomposition temperature, and flame retardancy of the resulting epoxy thermosets were evaluated. The resulting epoxy thermosets show high T_g, low thermal expansion, moderate thermostability, and excellent flame retardancy. The bulky biphenylene phosphinate pendant makes polymer chains difficult to rotate, explaining the high T_g and low thermal expansion characteristic. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 7898–7912, 2008     

Syntheses of pyrimidine‐based polymers containing electron‐withdrawing substituent with high open circuit voltage and applications for polymer solar cells

Polymers using new electron‐deficient units, 2‐pyriminecarbonitrile and 2‐fluoropyrimidine, were synthesized and utilized for the photovoltaics. Donor‐acceptor (D‐A) types of conjugated polymers ( PBDTCN, PBDTTCN, PBDTF, and PBDTTF ) containing 4,8‐bis(2‐octyldodecyloxy)benzo[1,2‐b;3,4‐b′]dithiophene (BDT) or 4,8‐bis(5‐(2‐octyldodecyloxy)thiophen‐2‐yl)benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]dithiophene (BDTT) as electron rich unit and 2‐pyriminecarbonitrile or 2‐fluoropyrimidine as electron deficient unit were synthesized. We designed pyrimidine derivatives in which strong electron‐withdrawing group (C?N or fluorine) was introduced to the C2 position for the generation of strong electron‐deficient property. By the combination with the electron‐rich unit, the pyrimidines will provide low band gap polymers with low highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy levels for higher open‐circuit voltages (V_OC). For the syntheses of the polymers, the electron‐rich and the electron‐deficient units were combined by Stille coupling reaction with Pd(0)‐catalyst. Absorption spectra of the thin films of PBDTTCN and PBDTTF with BDTT unit show shift to a longer wavelength region than PBDTCN and PBDTF with BDT unit. Four synthesized polymers provided low electrochemical bandgaps of 1.56 to 1.96 eV and deep HOMO energy levels between ?5.67 and ?5.14 eV. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Polymer Science Part A: Polymer Chemistry Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 771–784     

Polymerization of high‐solids‐content acrylic latexes using a nonionic polymerizable surfactant

Stable high‐solids‐content methyl methacrylate/butylacrylate latexes with small particle sizes (in the range of 150–180 nm) were obtained with a nonionic polymerizable surfactant (surfmer). Three percent of surfmer with respect to monomer was proven to be enough for the stabilization of the latexes. The influence of different operational variables on the stabilization of the final latex was analyzed, and the conditions needed to obtain coagulum‐free latex were assessed. The inorganic potassium persulfate/sodium metabisulfite initiator system provided better stability than the organic tert‐butyl hydroperoxide/ascorbic acid as a result of the end groups. In addition, the feeding of acrylic acid during the second half of the polymerization improved the stability of the final latex. The reduction of the feeding time was effective in the stabilization. Proof of the surfmer incorporation into the particles is presented. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 1552–1559, 2002     

High‐performance field‐effect transistors based on furan‐containing diketopyrrolopyrrole copolymer under a mild annealing temperature

Two furan‐flanked polymers poly{3,6‐difuran‐2‐yl‐2,5‐di(2‐octyldodecyl)‐pyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐1,4‐dione‐alt‐thienylenevinylene} (PDVFs), with a highly π‐extended diketopyrrolopyrrole backbone, are developed for solution‐processed high‐performance polymer field‐effect transistors (FETs). Atomic force microscopy and grazing incidence X‐ray scattering analyses indicate that PDVF‐8 and PDVF‐10 films exhibit a similar nodular morphology with the ultrasmall lamellar distances of 16.84 and 18.98 Å, respectively. When compared with the reported polymers with the same alkyl substitutes, this is the smallest d‐spacing value observed to date. This closed lamellar crystallinity facilitates charge carrier transport. Therefore, polymer thin‐film transistors fabricated from as‐spun PDVF‐8 films exhibit a high hole mobility exceeding 1.0 cm² V^?1 s^?1 with a current on/off ratio above 10⁶. After annealing treatment at 100 °C in air, the highest hole mobility of PDVF‐8‐based FETs was significantly improved to 1.90 cm² V^?1 s^?1, which is among the highest values of the reported FET devices fabricated from polymer thin films based on this mild annealing temperature. In contrast, long alkyl‐substituted PDVF‐10 exhibited a relatively low hole mobility of 1.65 cm² V^?1 s^?1 mainly resulting from low molecular weight. This work demonstrated that PDVFs would be promising semiconductors for developing cost‐effective and large‐scale production of flexible organic electronics. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 1970–1977     

Facile and efficient preparation of phosphinate‐functionalized aromatic diamines and their high‐Tg polyimides

Two novel phosphorus‐functionalized aromatic diamines, 1,1‐bis(4‐aminophenyl)‐1‐(6‐oxido‐6H‐dibenz <c,e> <1,2> oxaphosphorin‐6‐yl)ethane ( 1 ) and bis(4‐aminophenyl)‐(6‐oxido‐6H‐dibenz <c,e> <1,2> oxaphosphorin‐6‐yl)phenylmethane ( 2 ), were prepared from 9,10‐dihydro‐oxa‐10‐phosphaphenanthrene‐10‐oxide, 4‐aminoacetophenone, or 4‐aminobenzophenone in excess aniline using p‐toluenesulfonic acid monohydrate as catalyst by an efficient, one‐pot procedure. The effect of electron withdrawing/donating groups on the stabilization of the resulting carbocation seems critical for the success of the process and was discussed in detail. Based on diamines ( 1–2 ), a series of new polyimides, (5a–5d) and (6a–6d) , were prepared, respectively. Polyimides (5a–5d) are flexible and creasable. In contrast, polyimides (6a–6d) are brittle because of the structure rigidity, according to the analysis based on the NMR temperature‐dependent spectra of ( 2 ). Polyimides 5 displaying high T_g (318–392 °C), high moduli (3.39–4.49 GPa), low coefficient of thermal expansion (42–50 ppm/°C), and moderate thermal stability (T_d 5 wt % at 426–439 °C), are excellent high‐T_g and flame‐retardant materials. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 2486–2499, 2009     

Poly(1,4‐diketo‐3,6‐diphenylpyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐alt−3,6‐carbazole/2,7‐fluorene) as high‐performance two‐photon dyes

This article reports the synthesis, one‐ and two‐photon absorption, and excited fluorescence properties of poly(1,4‐diketo‐3,6‐diphenylpyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐alt‐N‐octyl‐3,6‐carbazole/2,7‐fluorene) ( PDCZ / PDFL ). PDCZ and PDFL are synthesized by the Suzuki cross‐coupling of 2,5‐dioctyl‐1,4‐diketo‐3,6‐bis(p‐bromophenylpyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole and N‐octyl‐3,6‐bis(3,3‐dimethyl‐1,3,2‐dioxaborolan‐2‐yl)carbazole or 2,7‐bis(3,3‐dimethyl‐1,3,2‐dioxaborolan‐2‐yl)fluorene and have number‐average molecular weights of 8.5 × 10³ and 1.14 × 10⁴ g/mol and polydispersities of 2.06 and 1.83, respectively. They are highly soluble in common organic solvents and emit strong orange one‐ and two‐photon excited fluorescence (2PEF) in THF solution and exhibit high light and heat stability. The maximal two‐photon absorption cross‐sections (δ) measured in THF solution by the 2PEF method using femtosecond laser pulses are 970 and 900 GM per repeating unit for PDCZ and PDFL , respectively. These 1,4‐diketo‐pyrrolo[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐containing polymers with full aromatic structure and large δ will be promising high‐performance 2PA dyes applicable in two‐photon science and technology. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 944–951     

Synthesis and properties of methacrylate‐based networked polymers having ionic liquid structures

Methacrylate‐based networked polymers having ionic liquid structures were prepared by radical copolymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) with multifunctional crosslinkers: ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA), trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TMPTMA), or triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate (TEGDMA), in the presence of 1‐ethyl‐3‐methylethyl‐1‐imidazolium bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonyl imide (EMImTFSI). The fundamental physical properties of several film samples prepared by varying the monomer composition and ionic liquid content were investigated. The obtained materials became turbid with increasing crosslinker content and ionic liquid content. Their ionic conductivity increased with increasing ionic liquid content, while it was almost independent of the crosslinker content. EGDMA‐derived materials and TMPTMA‐derived materials showed higher ionic conductivity than TEGDMA‐derived materials. TMPTMA‐derived materials showed higher thermal stability than EGDMA or TEGDMA‐derived materials. EGDMA and TMPTMA‐derived materials were stiffer than the TEGDMA‐derived materials. The elastic modulus of the film samples increased but the film became more brittle with the increase of crosslinker content. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy observation revealed that phase separation of networked polymers and ionic liquid occurred in the highly crosslinked samples, and the phase separation structures became larger in scale with the increase of crosslinking density. This phase separation was considered to have a strong effect on the mechanical properties of the film samples. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

Nanocomposites based on crosslinked polyacrylic latex/silver nanoparticles for waterborne high‐performance antibacterial coatings

Functional polymer/AgNPs nanocomposites have been prepared. Silver nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized to which polyacrylamide, PAAm, was covalently bound. PAAm was synthesized via a RAFT reaction and carried thiol and carboxylic acid end groups. Thiol was used to bind the polymer to the metal surface and carboxyl for further reactions. The AgNPs were used in a post‐crosslinking reaction with a separately synthesized poly(butyl acrylate‐co‐methyl methacrylate)/polyglycidyl methacrylate core/shell latex bearing epoxy functional groups. Dynamic mechanical analysis showed that the functional AgNPs effectively crosslinked the latex polymer, and that the final product had excellent mechanical strength. Antibacterial tests revealed that the nanocomposite films had strong antibacterial activity against all types of the bacteria and the immobilization of silver NPs by crosslinking retarded the release of silver in comparison to the uncrosslinked ones. With the presented method, it is possible to obtain ductile antibacterial nanocomposites to be used as waterborne functional coatings. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 1435–1447     

Synthesis and FET characterization of novel ambipolar and low‐bandgap naphthalene‐diimide‐based semiconducting polymers

A novel series of naphthalene‐diimide‐based semiconducting polymers ( P1–P4 ) containing benzodithiophene or dithienopyrrole were successfully synthesized for ambipolar semiconducting materials showing near infrared absorptions. The incorporation of a 3‐hexylthiophene (3HT) spacer extended the intramolecular charge‐transfer (ICT) peak from λ_onset = 739 nm ( P1 ) to 785 nm ( P3 ). Moreover, about 250 nm red‐shift of the ICT peaks was observed in P2 and P4 compared to P1 and P3 due to the increased high‐lying HOMO energy levels. The grazing incidence X‐ray scattering of the P3 and P4 films proved the slightly improved crystalline order in the π?π stacking direction, indicating that the planar backbone is probably due to the introduced 3HT. The P1–P4 ‐based field‐effect transistor showed n‐type dominant ambipolar characteristics. The P2 and P4 showed higher electron mobilities up to 1.5 × 10^?2 cm² V^?1 s^?1 than P1 and P3 , which might be influenced by the orientation of the polymer backbone and the intermolecular orbital overlap. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 359–367     

Development and application of novel ring‐opening polymerizations to functional networked polymers

This Highlight gives an overview of the recent progress in development of new ring‐opening polymerizations (ROPs) and their applications to functional networked polymers in our group. The described ROPs involve thermally induced polymerization of 1,3‐benzoxazine, anionic alternating copolymerizations of epoxides and lactones, and those exhibiting equilibrium nature. These ROPs were successfully applied to the syntheses of the relevant networked polymers, leading to their distinctive features such as high thermal stability, small volume shrinkage, and selective decrosslinking ability, which enabled design and development of next generation materials. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 4847–4858, 2009     

Aryl acrylate based high‐internal‐phase emulsions as precursors for reactive monolithic polymer supports

Water‐in‐oil high‐internal‐phase emulsions (HIPEs), containing 4‐nitrophenyl acrylate and 2,4,6‐trichlorophenyl acrylate as reactive monomers, were prepared and polymerized, and highly porous monolithic materials resulted. The novel materials were studied by combustion analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy scanning electron microscopy, mercury porosimetry, and N₂ adsorption/desorption analysis. With both esters, cellular macroporous monolithic polymers were obtained; the use of 4‐nitrophenyl acrylate resulted in a cellular material with void diameters between 3 and 7 μm and approximately 3‐μm interconnects, whereas the use of 2,4,6‐trichlorophenyl acrylate yielded a foam with void diameters between 2 and 5 μm, most interconnects being around 1 μm. The resulting monoliths proved to be very reactive toward nucleophiles, and possibilities of functionalizing the novel polymer supports were demonstrated via reactions with amines bearing additional functional groups and via the synthesis of an acid chloride derivative. Tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane and tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine derivatives were obtained. The hydrolysis of 4‐nitrophenylacrylate removed the nitrophenyl group, yielding a monolithic acrylic acid polymer. Furthermore, functionalization to immobilized acid chloride was performed very efficiently, with more than 95% of the acid groups reacting. The measurement of the nitrogen content in 4‐nitrophenyl acrylate poly(HIPE)s after various times of hydrolysis showed the influence of the total pore volume of the monolithic polymers on the velocity of the reaction, which was faster with the more porous polymer. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 296–303, 2005     

An overview of developments in poly(urethane‐isocyanurates) elastomers

The growth of the science and technology of plastics leads to the development of new materials with more desirable properties. Such kinds of materials include polyurethanes with isocyanurate structural units combining the properties of great strength and high temperature stability. Most of them are produced as rigid foams designed as insulation materials for industrial applications. However, great progress has been made with the introduction of isocyanurate rings in the non‐cellular areas, especially in elastomers. The aim of this work is to present an overview of the major developments on the field of poly(urethane‐isocyanurate) elastomers. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis and comparative solution properties of single‐, twin‐, and triple‐tailed associating ionic polymers based on diallylammonium salts

The cycloterpolymerizations of single‐, twin‐, and triple‐tailed hydrophobes with hydrophilic monomer N,N‐diallyl‐N‐carboethoxymethylammonium chloride and sulfur dioxide afforded a series of cationic polyelectrolytes (CPEs) in excellent yields. These CPEs, upon the acidic hydrolysis of the pendent ester groups, gave the corresponding pH‐responsive cationic acid salts, which, upon a treatment with sodium hydroxide, were converted to polybetaines (PBs), anionic polyelectrolytes (APEs), and PB/APE polymers containing various proportions of zwitterionic (PB) and anionic fractions (APE) in the polymer chain. At a shear rate of 0.36 s⁻¹ at 30 °C, salt‐free water solutions of the CPEs (2 g/dL) containing 8, 4, and 2.67 mol % of the single‐, twin‐, and triple‐tailed hydrophobes (all having 8 mol % octyloxy tails) had apparent viscosity values of 70, 2800, and 396,000 cps, respectively. The PB/APE polymer with a ratio of 33:67 for the zwitterionic and anionic fractions in the polymer chain gave the highest viscosity value. The superior viscosity behavior of the polymers containing the triple‐tailed hydrophobe was attributed to the blocky nature of the comonomer. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 5480–5494, 2006