Synthesis and characterization of new aromatic polyamides bearing crown ethers or their dipodal counterparts in the pendant structure. II. Benzo‐15‐crown‐5 and ortho‐bis[2‐(2‐ethoxyethoxy)ethoxy]benzene

This article describes the synthesis and characterization of two diacid monomers, each containing a benzo‐15‐crown‐5 subunit or its dipodal counterpart. Both novel monomers were reacted with technical aromatic diamines with Yamazaki's direct polyamidation method to render modified polyisophthalamides with high molecular weights containing side moieties of cyclic and acyclic ethylene oxide sequences. All the polymers were soluble in aprotic polar solvents and showed high glass‐transition temperatures in the range of 190–345 °C. The polymers with side crown ethers showed much higher glass‐transition temperatures than those with acyclic linear side ethylene oxide arms. The chemical composition, particularly with respect to the diamine and the open or closed character of the pendent ethylene oxide sequence, also affected other general properties such as the mechanical resistance, mechanical modulus, or water absorption. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 4063–4075, 2006     

Soluble Polyamides and Polyimides Functionalized with Benzo‐15‐Crown‐5‐Pendant Groups

Summary: A new diamine monomer containing a crown ether was made to react with commercial diacid chlorides and dianhydrides to yield new aromatic polyamides and polyimides. The crown ether moiety was introduced as a pendant group so that the polymers showed enhanced solubility in organic solvents, good thermal properties (high transition temperatures and high thermal stability), and good film‐forming ability.

The new aromatic polyamides and polyimides bearing a benzo‐15‐crown‐5‐pendant group synthesized here.     

Synthesis and characterization of new aromatic polyamides bearing crown ethers or their dipodal counterparts in the pendant structure. I. Benzo‐12‐crown‐4 and ortho‐bis(2‐ethoxyethoxy)benzene

Two novel isophthalic diacid‐based monomers have been synthesized by inclusion in ring position 5 of a functionalized benzoylamine moiety. The functionalization includes a 12‐crown‐4 ether group fused with the benzene subunit and a dipodand substructure, formally a disubstitution of the benzene ring, with two sequences of ethyl‐terminated ethylene oxide units, which represent the open‐chain counterpart of the alicylic crown moiety. The polycondensation of the two diacids with five aromatic diamines yielded 10 new polyamides with crown or podand pendant substructures. The polyamides had previously been chemically characterized by NMR, IR, and elemental analysis. The polymers showed high glass transition temperatures of up to 349 °C, good thermal stability (T_{donset, N2} ≈ 400 °C), and improved solubility in organic solvents. The presence of acyclic or alicyclic oxyethylene sequences as crown ether or podand substructures and an additional amide side group per repeat unit made the polymers essentially amorphous and improved their water absorption ability in comparison with nonsubstituted polyamides. Water uptake values as high as 12% were observed at 65% relative humidity. All the polyamides showed a good film‐forming ability, and the mechanical properties of these films are considered to be satisfactory for experimental aromatic polyamides. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2270–2281, 2006     

Self‐assembly of star‐shaped polystyrene‐block‐polypeptide copolymers synthesized by the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and ring‐opening living polymerization of α‐amino acid‐N‐carboxyanhydrides

The self‐assembling nature and phase‐transition behavior of a novel class of triarm, star‐shaped polymer–peptide block copolymers synthesized by the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and living ring‐opening polymerization of α‐amino acid‐N‐carboxyanhydride are demonstrated. The two‐step synthesis strategy adopted here allows incorporating polypeptides into the usual synthetic polymers via an amido–amidate nickelacycle intermediate, which is used as the macroinitiator for the growth of poly(γ‐benzyl‐L ‐glutamate). The characterization data are reported from analyses using gel permeation chromatography and infrared, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. This synthetic scheme grants a facile way to prepare a wide range of polymer–peptide architectures with perfect microstructure control, preventing the formation of homopolypeptide contaminants. Studies regarding the supramolecular organization and phase‐transition behavior of this class of polymer‐block‐polypeptide copolymers have been accomplished with X‐ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, and thermal analyses. The conformational change of the peptide segment in the block copolymer has been investigated with variable‐temperature infrared spectroscopy. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2774–2783, 2006     

Synthesis and polymerization reactions of cyclic imino ethers. I. Ring‐opening homopolyaddition of AB‐type hydroxyphenyl‐substituted 2‐oxazolines

Homopolyaddition reactions of AB‐type monomers containing a 2‐oxazoline and a phenol group in different positions of the phenyl ring, namely, 2‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐2‐oxazoline, 2‐(3‐hydroxyphenyl)‐2‐oxazoline, 2‐(2‐hydroxyphenyl)‐2‐oxazoline, and 2‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐4,4‐dimethyl‐2‐oxazoline, were studied. Except for 2‐(4‐hydroxyphenyl)‐4,4‐dimethyl‐2‐oxazoline, the reaction carried out in bulk or a solution of highly boiling solvents resulted in the formation of poly(ether amide)s with molecular weights in the range of 10³ to 10⁴ as measured by vapor pressure osmometry and gel permeation chromatography. A mechanism of the growth reaction, including a nucleophilic attack of a phenol group to a 2‐oxazoline ring in the 5‐position, was suggested. The polymerization was accompanied by a side reaction of the amido groups formed by the primary reaction of the 2‐oxazoline ring. This led to branching of the main chain. The thermal properties of the prepared polymers were evaluated. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 343–355, 2006     

Synthesis and characterization of new soluble aromatic polyamides derived from 1,4‐Bis(4‐carboxyphenoxy)‐2, 5‐di‐tert‐butylbenzene

Aromatic polyamides based on a novel bis(ether‐carboxylic acid) were synthesized by the direct phosphorylation condensation method. 1,4‐Bis(4‐carboxyphenoxy)‐2,5‐di‐tert‐butylbenzene was combined with various diamines containing flexible linkages and side substituents to render a set of eight novel aromatic polyamides. The polymers were produced with high yields and moderate to high inherent viscosities (0.49–1.32 dL/g) that corresponded to weight‐average and number‐average molecular weights (by gel permeation chromatography) of 31,000–80,000 and 19,000–50,000, respectively. Except for a single example, the polyamides were essentially amorphous and soluble in a variety of common solvents such as cyclohexanone, dioxane, and tetrahydrofuran. They showed glass‐transition temperatures of 250–295 °C (by differential scanning calorimetry) and 10% weight loss temperatures above 460 °C, as revealed by thermogravimetric analysis in nitrogen. Polymer films, obtained by casting from N,N‐dimethylacetamide solutions, exhibited good mechanical properties, with tensile strengths of 83–111 MPa and tensile moduli of 2.0–2.2 GPa. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 475–485, 2001     

Synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate)‐b‐polystyrene containing a crown ether unit at the junction point via combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and nitroxide mediated radical polymerization routes

Poly(methyl methacrylate)‐b‐polystyrene (PMMA‐b‐PS) containing a benzo‐15‐crown‐5 unit at the junction point was prepared by combining atom transfer radical polymerization and nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization. For this purpose, 6,7,9,10,12,13,15,16‐octahydro‐5,8,11,14,17‐pentaoxa‐benzocyclopentadecene‐2‐carboxylic acid 3‐(2‐bromo‐2‐methyl‐propionyloxy)‐2‐methyl‐2‐[2‐phenyl‐2‐(2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl‐piperidin‐1‐yloxy)‐ethoxycarbonyl]‐propyl ester ( 3 ) was synthesized and used as an initiator in atom transfer radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate in the presence of CuCl and pentamethyldiethylenetriamine at 60°C. A linear behavior was observed in both plots of ln([M]₀/[M]) versus time and M_n,_GPC versus conversion indicating that the polymerization proceeded in a controlled/living manner. Thus obtained PMMA precursor was used as a macroinitiator in nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization of styrene (St) at 125°C to give well‐defined PMMA‐b‐PS with crown ether per chain. Kinetic data were also obtained for copolymerization. Moreover, potassium picrate (K⁺ picrate) complexation of 3 and PMMA‐b‐PS copolymer was studied. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3242–3249, 2006     

Novel,well‐defined polystyrene with a fluorine cluster end‐capped group: Synthesis,characterization, and surface properties

Novel, well‐defined fluorinated polystyrene was synthesized for the first time via the controlled radical polymerization of styrene through a relatively simple process and was characterized with ¹H NMR, ¹⁹F NMR, and gel permeation chromatography. The surface properties of polystyrene and poly(acrylonitrile‐co‐butadiene‐co‐styrene) films were modified with the obtained polymers. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements of the air‐side surface composition of the modified poly(acrylonitrile‐co‐butadiene‐co‐styrene) films showed that fluorine enriched the outermost surface, resulting in fantastic surface properties that came close to those of poly(tetrafluoroethylene). © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3853–3858, 2006     

Effect of 1‐hexene comonomer on polyethylene particle growth and copolymer chemical composition distribution

An investigation of the polymer particle growth characteristics and polymer molecular weight and composition distributions in ethylene homopolymerization and ethylene/1‐hexene copolymerization has been carried out with a catalyst comprising a zirconocene and methylaluminoxane immobilized on a silica support. The presence of 1‐hexene leads to higher productivity and easier fragmentation of the support during particle growth. Crystallization analysis fractionation and gel permeation chromatography analysis of ethylene/1‐hexene copolymers prepared at different polymerization times reveals a broadening of the chemical composition distribution with increasing polymerization time as a result of the gradual formation of a relatively high‐molecular‐weight, ethylene‐rich fraction. The results are indicative of significant monomer diffusion effects in both homopolymerization and copolymerization. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2883–2890, 2006     

Blue‐light‐emitting and anodically electrochromic materials of new wholly aromatic polyamides derived from the high‐efficiency chromophore 4,4′‐dicarboxy‐4″‐methyltriphenylamine

A series of organosoluble, aromatic polyamides were synthesized from a 4‐methyl‐substituted, triphenylamine‐containing, aromatic diacid monomer, 4,4′‐dicarboxy‐4″‐methyltriphenylamine, which is a blue‐light (454‐nm) emitter with a fluorescence quantum efficiency of 46%. These triphenylamine‐based, high‐performance polymers had strong fluorescence emissions in the blue region with high quantum yields up to 64% and one reversible oxidation redox couple around 1.20 V versus Ag/AgCl in acetonitrile solutions. They exhibited good thermal stability, with 10% weight loss temperatures above 480 °C under a nitrogen atmosphere and with relatively high glass‐transition temperatures (252–309 °C). All the polyamides revealed excellent stability of electrochromic characteristics, changing color from the original pale yellow to blue. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 4095–4107, 2006     

Synthesis and characterization of poly(4‐alkyl‐4‐methyl‐2‐azetidinone)s

Poly‐β‐amides (nylons 3) were synthesized via the anionic polymerization of a series of 4‐alkyl‐4‐methyl‐2‐azetidinones where the alkyl group is a methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, or pentyl. The “non‐assisted” polymerization was conducted under vacuum, in the bulk, at 160°C, using potassium 2‐pyrrolidonate as catalyst, whereas the “assisted” polymerization was carried in dimethylsulfoxide, at room temperature, using N‐acetylpyrrolidinone‐2 as activator but it gave no polymer with a propyl or bulkier side group. Side reactions occur in all cases. X‐ray spectra showed that poly(4‐alkyl‐4‐methyl‐2‐azetidinone)s are amorphous with propyl, butyl, and pentyl groups, and semi‐crystalline with methyl or ethyl substituents. Both semi‐crystalline polyamides exhibit an extended planar zigzag conformation, with a fiber identity period along the c axis of 4.9 Å. Glass transition temperatures, melting temperatures, and/or decomposition temperatures are also reported. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 761–769, 1999     

Synthesis and characterization of liquid‐crystalline block copolymers with cyanoterphenyl moieties by atom transfer radical polymerization

A series of new mesomorphic block copolymers composedofdifferentmacroinitiators, including poly(ethylene oxide), polystyrene, and poly(ethylene oxide)‐b‐polystyrene,and polymethacrylate with a pendent cyanoterphenyl group were synthesized through atom transfer radical polymerization. The number‐average molecular weights of the three diblock copolymers, determined by gel permeation chromatography, were 10,254, 9,772, and 15,632 g mol^?1, and their polydispersity indices were 1.17, 1.28, and 1.34. The mesomorphic and optical properties of all the block copolymers were investigated, and they possessed a smectic A phase with mesophasic ranges wider than 100 °C. Moreover, X‐ray diffraction patterns provided evidence of the smectic A phase and the corresponding interdigitated packing of all the polymers. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 4593–4602, 2006     

Proton transfer‐controlled anionic polymerization of methyl‐substituted β‐lactams with potassium t‐butoxide and subsequent coupling reaction with saccharides

The potassium t‐butoxide‐catalyzed ring‐opening polymerization of 3,3‐dimethyl‐ and 4,4‐dimethyl‐2‐azetidinone proceeds quantitatively in a mixture of N,N‐dimethylacetamide and 5–10 wt % of lithium chloride at 25°C to give the corresponding monodisperse polyamides. The addition of methyl α‐D ‐glucoside into the living polyamide system gives a novel polyamide linked with the glucose moiety at one chain end. A new graft copolymer composed of a water soluble polysaccharide (dextran) backbone and many monodisperse polyamide branches was also prepared by a similar coupling method. The difference in acidity among the lactam monomers, the corresponding polyamides, and the alcohols was essential for the attainment of such a proton transfer‐controlled system composed of the living polymerization and the subsequent coupling reaction. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 909–915, 1999     

ABA triblock copolymers with a ring‐opening metathesis polymerization/macromolecular chain‐transfer agent approach

Block copolymers containing polystyrene and polycyclooctene were synthesized with a ring‐opening metathesis polymerization/chain‐transfer approach. Polystyrene, containing appropriately placed olefins, was prepared by anionic polymerization and served as a macromolecular chain‐transfer agent for the ring‐opening metathesis polymerization of cyclooctene. These unsaturated polymers were subsequently converted to the corresponding saturated triblock copolymers with a simple heterogeneous catalytic hydrogenation step. The molecular and morphological characterization of the block copolymers was consistent with the absence of significant branching in the central polycyclooctene and polyethylene blocks [high melting temperatures (114–127 °C) and levels of crystallinity (17–42%)]. A dramatic improvement in both the long‐range order and the mechanical properties of a microphase‐separated, symmetric polystyrene–polycyclooctene–polystyrene block copolymer sample was observed after fractionation. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 361–373, 2007     

High quantum yield photoluminescence of new polyamides containing oligo‐PPV amino derivatives and related oligomers

The synthesis and the chemical physical characterization of new photoluminescent (PL) chromophores and polymers are reported. Chromophores (oligo‐PPV symmetric derivatives ending with amino groups) are strong blue emitters with a PL quantum yield of ～70% in dioxane solution. They have been used to prepare polyamides by reaction with aliphatic acyl dichlorides in which emitting and non emitting units are alternated. PL properties of the synthesized polyamides have been evaluated in solution and reveal a strong blue emission (PL quantum yield ～60%), To increase the solubility of these systems, oligomers have been purposely prepared and then characterized. They show a peculiar white emission when excited in DMF solution; to get insight into this interesting behavior, asymmetric monoacetylated chromophores have been prepared as model compounds for the chromophoric end groups of the polyamide chains. The emission spectra of these compounds reveal a broad excimeric yellow emission which is responsible, along with the blue emission of the inner chromophoric units, of the overall white emission of the oligomers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 2677–2689, 2009     

Synthesis and properties of new halogen‐substituted polyamides from 5‐halo‐m‐phenylenediamines and both aliphatic and aromatic dicarboxylic acids

New halogen‐substituted aromatic–aliphatic and wholly aromatic polyamides with high inherent viscosities were synthesized by the direct polycondensation of 5‐halo‐m‐phenylenediamines, where the halogens were Cl, Br, and I, with both aliphatic and aromatic dicarboxylic acids in N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone with a mixture of triphenyl phosphite and pyridine as a condensing agent. The solubility of the halogen‐substituted polyamides was much higher than that of the parent polyamides derived from m‐phenylenediamine. The glass‐transition temperatures of the substituted aromatic–aliphatic polyamides increased in the order Cl < Br < I, whereas the temperatures of 10% weight loss in air decreased in the reverse order. The limiting oxygen index values, as an indication of flammability, increased for the substituted aromatic–aliphatic polyamides in the order Cl < Br < I. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 3911–3918, 2000     

Novel aromatic polyamides containing 2‐diphenylamino‐(9,9‐dimethylamine) units as multicolored electrochromic and high‐contrast electrofluorescent materials

A series of electrochromic and photoluminescence‐active polyamides 4a‐4e were prepared from a novel dicarboxylic acid, N,N‐di(4‐carboxyphenyl)‐2‐amino‐9,9‐dimethylfluorene, and five diamines via a condensation polymerization. These polyamides were amorphous and readily soluble in many solvents. The glass transition temperatures were in the range of 281–339 °C and the 10% weight loss temperatures in nitrogen were in excess of 490 °C. The polyamides exhibited strong fluorescence in either solution or solid states. The polyamides 4a‐4d showed reversible electrochemical redox with color changing from colorless to grey‐green. Specially, the polyamide 4e with 2‐diphenylamino‐(9,9‐dimethylamine) group in both diamine and dicarboxylic acid residues exhibited multicolored electrochromic behaviors. Furthermore, the fluorescence of these polyamides could be reversibly electroswitched with a high contrast up to 221.4, enabling their potential applications in dual‐switching electrochromic/electrofluorescent materials. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2017 , 55, 213–222     

Polymer‐dispersed liquid‐crystal materials fabricated with frontal polymerization

We report on the morphological and thermal properties of polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs) fabricated with frontal‐polymerization‐induced phase separation (FPIPS). Frontal polymerization is characterized by a rapid‐conversion, high‐temperature, and large‐thermal‐gradient environment. A comparison is made between the morphological and thermal properties of PDLCs fabricated with FPIPS and traditional thermal‐polymerization‐induced phase separation. Characterization includes differential scanning calorimetry to probe the glass and nematic‐to‐isotropic transitions and scanning electron microscopy to evaluate the phase‐separated morphology. In addition, the frontal temperatures and velocities are reported for PDLCs fabricated with frontal polymerization. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 204–212, 2003     

Acrylonitrile‐containing polymers via a combination of metal‐catalyzed living radical and nitroxide‐mediated free‐radical polymerization routes

2‐Phenyl‐2‐[(2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidino)oxy] ethyl 2‐bromopropanoate was successfully used as an initiator in consecutive living radical polymerization routes, such as metal‐catalyzed living radical polymerization and nitroxide‐mediated free‐radical polymerization, to produce various types of acrylonitrile‐containing polymers, such as styrene–acrylonitrile, polystyrene‐b‐styrene–acrylonitrile, polystyrene‐b‐poly(n‐butyl acrylate)‐b‐polyacrylonitrile, and polystyrene‐b‐polyacrylonitrile. The kinetic data were obtained for the metal‐catalyzed living radical polymerization of styrene–acrylonitrile. All the obtained polymers were characterized with ¹H NMR, gel permeation chromatography, and differential scanning calorimetry. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3374–3381, 2006     

Crosslinked polyamide based on main‐chain type polybenzoxazines derived from a primary amine‐functionalized benzoxazine monomer

Two types of main‐chain type polybenzoxazines with amide and benzoxazine groups as repeating units in the main chain, termed as poly(amide‐benzoxazine), have been synthesized. They have been prepared by polycondensation reaction of primary amine‐bifunctional benzoxazine with adipoyl and isophthaloyl dichloride using dimethylacetamide as solvent. Additionally, a model reaction is designed from the reaction of 3,3′‐(4,4′‐methylenebis(4,1‐phenylene))bis(3,4‐dihydro‐2H‐benzo[e][1,3]oxazin‐6‐amine) with benzoyl chloride. The structures of model compound and polyamides are confirmed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR) spectroscopies. Differential scanning calorimetry and FTIR are also used to study crosslinking behavior of both the model compound and polymers. Thermal properties of the crosslinked polymers are also studied by thermogravimetric analysis. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011