Atom‐transfer radical grafting polymerization of 2‐methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine from silicon wafer surfaces

2‐Methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC), a biomimetic monomer, was grafted from silicon wafer surfaces at room temperature by combining self‐assembly of initiator and surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization. Two methods were used to control the grafting process. One was to add free initiator to the reaction system; the other was to add excess deactivator. The grafting densities up to 0.3 chains/nm² were obtained. The surface thickness increased linearly with MPC conversion. The thickness depended on catalyst and monomer concentrations, as well as activator/deactivator ratio. Poly(MPC) layers of >100 nm thick were obtained by optimizing the polymerization conditions. A second block of either poly(MPC) or poly[2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate] was also grown from the grafted poly(MPC), demonstrating the system livingness. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to examine the surface chemical compositions showed good agreement with the theoretical values. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2931–2942, 2004     

End‐group fidelity of copper(0)‐meditated radical polymerization at high monomer conversion: an ESI‐MS investigation

Copper(0)‐mediated radical polymerization (single electron transfer‐living radical polymerization) is an efficient polymerization technique that allows control over the polymerization of acrylates, vinyl chloride and other monomers, yielding bromide terminated polymer. In this contribution, we investigate the evolution of the end‐group fidelity at very high conversion both in the presence and in the absence of initially added copper (II) bromide (CuBr₂). High resolution electrospray‐ionization mass spectroscopy (ESI‐MS) allows determination of the precise chemical structure of the dead polymers formed during the polymerization to very high monomer conversion, including post polymerization conditions. Two different regimes can be identified via ESI‐MS analysis. During the polymerization, dead polymer results mainly from termination via disproportionation, whereas at very high conversion (or in the absence of monomer, that is, post‐polymerization), dead polymers are predominantly generated by chain transfer reactions (presumably to ligand). The addition of CuBr₂ significantly reduces the extent of termination by both chain transfer and disproportionation, at very high monomer conversion and under post‐polymerization conditions, offering a convenient approach to maintaining high end‐group fidelity in Cu(0)‐mediated radical polymerization. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Copper‐mediated initiators for continuous activator regeneration atom transfer radical polymerization of acrylonitrile

Initiators for continuous activator regeneration atom transfer radical polymerization technique was first accessed to acrylonitrile by using CuBr₂/2,2′‐bipyridine as the catalyst, ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate as the halogen initiator, and azobis(isobutyronitrile) as the free radical initiator. The key to success is ascribed to the facile achievement of the rapid equilibrium between active species and dormant species. Effects of ligand, catalyst concentration, free radical initiator concentration, and reaction temperature on the polymerization reaction and molecular weight (MW) as well as polydispersity index (PDI) were investigated in detail. The polymerization proceeded in a controlled/living fashion even though the concentration of copper catalyst decreased to 50 ppm, which is evident in pseudo first‐order kinetics of polymerization, linear increase of molecular weight, low PDI, and high chain‐end functionality of the generated polymer. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Radical polymerization of 2,5‐norbornadienes containing ester groups by AIBN and oxygen gas

New 2,5‐norbornadiene‐type monomers bearing 1‐adamantyl and cyclohexyl ester groups on their 2‐position polymerized with azobisisobutyronitrile to form the polymers consisting of two types of polymer unit structures. The major part had a saturated nortricyclene framework, which was formed by 2,6‐addition along with intramolecular cyclization on the norbornadiene moiety. The minor part consisted of 2‐norbornene‐type units constructed via 2,3‐addition. A series of norbornadiene‐based monomers spontaneously polymerized in the presence of oxygen. Because a radical inhibitor, namely hydroquinone, could suppress this spontaneous reaction, it was indicated that the oxygen‐induced polymerization proceeds via free‐radical polymerization mechanism. Changing a quantity of provided oxygen gas (O₂) to a norbornadiene monomer significantly affected on polymerization results, in specific, molecular weight of the formed polymer, which indicated that oxygen serves as one of the key reagents for the formation of free‐radical initiating species. It was proven that the combination of norbornadiene ethyl ester with O₂ was applicable as a new free‐radical initiator for polymerization of methyl methacrylate. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 2528–2536     

In situ atom transfer radical polymerization of styrene with a tetraethylthiuram disulfide/copper bromide/2,2′‐bipyridine initiating system

The living radical polymerization of styrene in bulk was successfully performed with a tetraethylthiuram disulfide/copper bromide/2,2′‐bipyridine (bpy) initiating system. The initiator Et₂NCS₂Br and the catalyst cuprous bromide (CuBr) were produced from the reactants in the system through in situ atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). A plot of natural logarithm of the ratio of original monomer concentration to monomer concentration at present, ln([M]₀/[M]) versus time gave a straight line, indicating that the kinetics was first‐order. The number‐average molecular weight from gel permeation chromatography (GPC) of obtained polystyrenes did not agree well with the calculated number‐average molecular weight but did correspond to a 0.5 initiator efficiency. The polydispersity index (i.e., the weight‐average molecular weight divided by the number‐average molecular weight) of obtained polymers was as low as 1.30. The resulting polystyrene with α‐diethyldithiocarbamate and ω‐Br end groups could initiate methyl methacrylate polymerization in the presence of CuBr/bpy or cuprous chloride/bpy complex catalyst through a conventional ATRP process. The block polymer was characterized with GPC, ¹H NMR, and differential scanning calorimetry. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 4001–4008, 2001     

Cu powder‐catalyzed single electron transfer‐living radical polymerization of acrylonitrile

Single electron transfer‐living radical polymerization (SET‐LRP) has been used as a new technique for the synthesis of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) catalyzed by Cu(0) powder with carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) as the initiator and hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) as the ligand in N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) or mixed solvent. Well‐controlled polymerization has been achieved as evidenced by a linear increase of molecular weight with respect to monomer conversion as well as narrow molecular weight distribution. Kinetics data of the polymerizations at both ambient temperature and elevated temperature demonstrate living/controlled feature. An increase in the concentration of ligand yields a higher monomer conversion within the same time frame and almost no polymerization occurs in the absence of ligand due to the poor disproportionation reaction of Cu(I). The reaction rate exhibits an increase with the increase of the amount of catalyst Cu(0)/HMTA. Better control on the molecular weight distribution has been produced with the addition of CuCl₂. In the presence of more polar solvent water, it is observed that there is a rapid increase in the polymerization rate. The effect of initiator on the polymerization is also preliminarily investigated. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Synthesis of poly(4‐vinylpyridine) by reverse atom transfer radical polymerization

Controlled radical polymerization of 4‐vinylpyridine (4VP) was achieved in a 50 vol % 1‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone/water solvent mixture using a 2,2′‐azobis(2,4‐dimethylpentanitrile) initiator and a CuCl₂/2,2′‐bipyridine catalyst–ligand complex, for an initial monomer concentration of [M]₀ = 2.32–3.24 M and a temperature range of 70–80 °C. Radical polymerization control was achieved at catalyst to initiator molar ratios in the range of 1.3:1 to 1.6:1. First‐order kinetics of the rate of polymerization (with respect to the monomer), linear increase of the number–average degree of polymerization with monomer conversion, and a polydispersity index in the range of 1.29–1.35 were indicative of controlled radical polymerization. The highest number–average degree of polymerization of 247 (number–average molecular weight = 26,000 g/mol) was achieved at a temperature of 70 °C, [M]₀ = 3.24 M and a catalyst to initiator molar ratio of 1.6:1. Over the temperature range studied (70–80 °C), the initiator efficiency increased from 50 to 64% whereas the apparent polymerization rate constant increased by about 60%. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 5748–5758, 2007     

Gel formation in atom transfer radical polymerization of 2‐(N,N‐dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate

Copolymers of 2‐(N,N‐dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA) were synthesized via atom transfer radical polymerization using ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate as the initiator, Cu(I)Br as the catalyst, and 1,1,4,7,10,10‐hexamethyltriethylene tetramine as the ligand. At low crosslinker levels, the polymerizations followed the first‐order kinetics. However, when the crosslinker level was above 10 mol %, the ln([M]₀/[M]) versus time curves showed deceleration at medium conversions because of the higher reactivity of EGDMA than that of DMAEMA. An acceleration at high conversions was also observed and probably caused by the diffusion limitations of catalyst/ligand complex in the polymer network. The hydrogels were characterized by swelling experiments, and the sol polymers were characterized by the size exclusion chromatographic technique to determine the number‐average molecular weight and polydispersity. The gel data were analyzed and, via a comparison to Flory's gelation theory, found to be more homogeneous than similar hydrogels prepared by conventional free‐radical polymerization methods. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 3780–3788, 2001     

Synthesis of polymers by template polymerization. I. Template polymerization of poly(methacrylic acid) with β‐cyclodextrin

A novel template monomer with multiple methacryloyl groups was synthesized with β‐cyclodextrin by the acetylation of primary hydroxyl groups and the esterification of secondary hydroxyl groups with methacrylic acid anhydride. The average number of methacryloyl groups in the monomer was 11. The radical polymerization of the monomer was carried out with the following initiators: α,α′‐azobisisobutylonitrile, H₂O₂? Fe²⁺ redox initiator, p‐xylyl‐N,N‐dimethyldithiocarbamate (XDC), and α‐bromo‐p‐xylyl‐N,N‐dimethyldithiocarbamate (BXDC). When the concentration of the monomer was less than 4.12 × 10^?3 M, polymerization was limited inside the molecule, and gelation of the system was hindered. For controlled radical photopolymerization with XDC and BXDC, the methacryloyl groups of the monomer were homogeneously polymerized, and poly(methacrylic acid) with a narrow molecular weight distribution was obtained by the hydrolysis of the polymerized products. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 39: 3539–3546, 2001     

Copper(0)‐mediated living radical polymerization of acrylonitrile: SET‐LRP or AGET‐ATRP

Cu(0)‐mediated living radical polymerization was first extended to acrylonitrile (AN) to synthesize polyacrylonitrile with a high molecular weight and a low polydispersity index. This was achieved by using Cu(0)/hexamethylated tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine (Me₆‐TREN) as the catalyst, 2‐bromopropionitrile as the initiator, and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as the solvent. The reaction was performed under mild reaction conditions at ambient temperature and thus biradical termination reaction was low. The rapid and extensive disproportionation of Cu(I)Br/Me₆‐TREN in DMSO/AN supports a mechanism consistent with a single electron transfer‐living radical polymerization (SET‐LRP) rather than activators generated by electron transfer atom transfer radical polymerization (AGET ATRP). ¹H NMR analysis and chain extension experiment confirm the high chain‐end functionality of the resultant polymer. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

Atom transfer radical polymerization of styrene using the novel initiator ethyl 2‐N,N‐(diethylamino)dithiocarbamoyl‐butyrate

The atom transfer radical polymerizations (ATRPs) of styrene initiated by a novel initiator, ethyl 2‐N,N‐(diethylamino)dithiocarbamoyl‐butyrate (EDDCB), in both bulk and solution were successfully carried out in the presence of copper(I) bromide (CuBr) and N,N,N′,N″,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine at 115 °C. The polymerization rate was first‐order with respect to the monomer concentration, and the molecular weights of the obtained polymers increased linearly with the monomer conversions with very narrow molecular weight distributions (as low as 1.17) up to higher conversions in both bulk and solution. The polymerization rate was influenced by various solvents in different degrees in the order of cyclohexanone > dimethylformamide > toluene. The molecular weight distributions of the produced polymers in cyclohexanone were higher than those in dimethylformamide and toluene. The results of ¹H NMR analysis and chain extension confirmed that well‐defined polystyrene bearing a photo‐labile N,N‐(diethylamino)dithiocarbamoyl group was obtained via ATRP of styrene with EDDCB as an initiator. The polymerization mechanism for this novel initiation system is a common ATRP process. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 32–41, 2006     

Free radical and nitroxide mediated polymerization of hydroxy–functional acrylates prepared via lipase–catalyzed transacylation reactions

3‐Hydroxypropyl acrylate, 4‐hydroxybutyl acrylate, 2‐methyl‐3‐hydroxypropyl acrylate, 2‐hydroxypropyl acrylate, neopentyl glycol acrylate, glyceryl acrylate, and dihydroxyhexyl acrylate were prepared via transacylation reaction of methyl acrylate with diols and triols catalyzed by Candida antarctica lipase B. After removal of the enzyme by filtration and the methyl acrylate by distillation, the monomers were polymerized via free radical polymerization (FRP) with azobisisobutyronitrile as initiator and nitroxide mediated polymerization (NMP) employing Blocbuilder? alkoxyamine initiator and SG‐1 free nitroxide resulting in hydroxy functional poly(acrylates). The NMP kinetics are discussed in detail. In addition, the polymers obtained by FRP and NMP are compared and the results are related to the amount of bisacrylates that are present in the initial monomer mixtures resulting from the transacylation reactions. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 2610–2621, 2010     

Synthesis of diblock copolymers by combining stable free radical polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization

A stable nitroxyl radical functionalized with an initiating group for atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), 4‐(2‐bromo‐2‐methylpropionyloxy)‐2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl‐1‐piperidinyloxy (Br‐TEMPO), was synthesized by the reaction of 4‐hydroxyl‐2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl‐1‐piperidinyloxy with 2‐bromo‐2‐methylpropionyl bromide. Stable free radical polymerization of styrene was then carried out using a conventional thermal initiator, dibenzoyl peroxide, along with Br‐TEMPO. The obtained polystyrene had an active bromine atom for ATRP at the ω‐end of the chain and was used as the macroinitiator for ATRP of methyl acrylate and ethyl acrylate to prepare block copolymers. The molecular weights of the resulting block copolymers at different monomer conversions shifted to higher molecular weights and increased with monomer conversion. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2468–2475, 2006     

Surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization grafting of poly(2,2,2‐trifluoroethyl methacrylate) from flat silicon wafer surfaces

Poly(2,2,2‐trifluoroethyl methacrylate) (PTFEMA), a partially fluorinated polymer, was directly grafted from silicon wafer surfaces by a surface‐initiated atom‐transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The polymer layer thickness increased linearly with monomer conversion and molecular weight of free polymers in solution. The thickness was mainly determined by the experimental conditions such as activator/deactivator ratio, monomer/catalyst ratio, and monomer concentration. PTFEMA layers of more than 100‐nm thick were obtained. The grafted PTFEMA chains were “living” and allowed the extension of a second block of PMMA. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy study showed that the chemical compositions at the surfaces agreed well with their theoretical values. A novel surface‐attachable difunctional initiator was also synthesized and applied to the grafting of PTFEMA. The grafting density was doubled using this difunctional initiator, from 0.48 to 0.86 chains/nm². © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 1252–1262, 2006     

Tetramethylguanidino‐tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine: A novel ligand for copper‐based atom transfer radical polymerization

With CuBr/tetramethylguanidino‐tris(2‐aminoethyl)amine (TMG₃‐TREN) as the catalyst, the atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of methyl methacrylate, n‐butyl acrylate, styrene, and acrylonitrile was conducted. The catalyst concentration of 0.5 equiv with respect to the initiator was enough to prepare well‐defined poly(methyl methacrylate) in bulk from methyl methacrylate monomer. For ATRP of n‐butyl acrylate, the catalyst behaved in a manner similar to that reported for CuBr/tris[2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl]amine. A minimum of 0.05 equiv of the catalyst with respect to the initiator was required to synthesize the homopolymer of the desired molecular weight and low polydispersity at the ambient temperature. In the case of styrene, ATRP with this catalyst occurred only when a 1:1 catalyst/initiator ratio was used in the presence of Cu(0) in ethylene carbonate. The polymerization of acrylonitrile with CuBr/TMG₃‐TREN was conducted successfully with a catalyst concentration of 50% with respect to the initiator in ethylene carbonate. End‐group analysis for the determination of the high degree of functionality of the homopolymers synthesized by the new catalyst was determined by NMR spectroscopy. The isotactic parameter calculated for each system indicated that the homopolymers were predominantly syndiotactic, signifying that the tacticity remained the same, as already reported for ATRP. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 5906–5922, 2005     

Atom transfer radical polymerization of styrenic ionic liquid monomers and carbon dioxide absorption of the polymerized ionic liquids

Polymeric forms of ionic liquids have many potential applications because of their high thermal stability and ionic nature. Two ionic liquid monomers, 1‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)‐3‐butyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate (VBIT) and 1‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)‐3‐ butyl imidazolium hexafluorophosphate (VBIH), were synthesized through the quaternization of N‐butylimidazole with 4‐vinylbenzylchloride and a subsequent anion‐ exchange reaction with sodium tetrafluoroborate or potassium hexafluorophosphate. Copper‐mediated atom transfer radical polymerization was used to polymerize VBIT and VBIH. The effects of various initiator/catalyst systems, monomer concentrations, solvent polarities, and reaction temperatures on the polymerization were examined. The polymerization was well controlled and exhibited living characteristics when CuBr/1,1,4,7,10,10‐hexamethyltriethylenetetramine or CuBr/2,2′‐bipyridine was used as the catalyst and ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate was used as the initiator. Characterizations by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and X‐ray diffraction showed that the resulting VBIT polymer, poly[1‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)‐3‐butyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate] (PVBIT), was amorphous and had excellent thermal stability, with a glass‐transition temperature of 84 °C. The polymerized ionic liquids could absorb CO₂ as ionic liquids: PVBIT absorbed 0.30% (w/w) CO₂ at room temperature and 0.78 atm. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 1432–1443, 2005     

Synthesis of comb‐branched polyacrylamide with cationic poly[(2‐dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate dimethylsulfate] quat

Comb‐branched polyelectrolytes with polyacrylamide backbones and poly[(2‐dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate methylsulfate] (polyDMAEMA‐DMS) side chains were prepared by free‐radical macromonomer polymerization. PolyDMAEMA‐DMS macromonomers bearing terminal styrenic moieties were synthesized by living anionic polymerization with lithium 4‐vinylbenzylamide (LiVBA) and lithium N‐isopropyl‐4‐vinylbenzylamide (LiPVBA) as initiators. In the presence of LiCl, LiPVBA initiated a living polymerization of 2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and produced polymers with well‐controlled molecular weights and low polydispersities. LiVBA could not directly initiate DMAEMA polymerization. After being capped with two units of dimethylacrylamide, DMAEMA polymerized with an initiator efficiency of 63%. The quaternization of the poly[(2‐dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate] macromonomer with dimethyl sulfate yielded the cationic polyDMAEMA‐DMS macromonomer. The polyDMAEMA‐DMS macromonomer had a much higher reactivity than acrylamide in free‐radical polymerization. This might have been due to the formation of polyDMAEMA‐DMS micelles in the polymerization system. The high macromonomer reactivity caused composition drift in a batch process. A semibatch method with a constant polyDMAEMA‐DMS feed rate was used to control the copolymer composition. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 2394–2405, 2002     

Controlled radical polymerization of 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate initiated by photofunctional 2‐(N,N‐diethyldithiocarbamyl)isobutyric acid

We demonstrated that density functional theory calculations provide a reliable and quantitative prediction of the trends in C? S bond dissociation energies using several model compounds as photoinitiator. On the basis of this information, we designed a possible photofunctional initiator for the polymerization of hydrophilic vinyl monomers. Photopolymerization of 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) hydrophilic monomer was carried out in ethanol initiated by 2‐(N,N‐diethyldithiocarbamyl)isobutyric acid (DTCA) under UV irradiation. We performed the first‐order time‐conversion plots in this polymerization system, and the straight line in the semilogarithmic coordinates indicated first order in monomer. The molecular weight of the poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) increased with increasing conversion. The molecular weight distribution (M_w/M_n) of the PHEMA was about 1.5. Methyl methacrylate (MMA) could also be polymerized in a living fashion with such a PHEMA precursor as a macroinitiator because PHEMA exhibited a dithiocarbamate (DC) group at its terminal end. This system could be applied to the architecture of amphiphilic block copolymers. It was concluded that these polymerization systems proceeded with controlled radical mechanism. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 76–82, 2004     

Copper(0)‐mediated living radical polymerization of acrylonitrile at room temperature

The copper(0)‐catalyzed living radical polymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) was investigated using ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate as an initiator and 2,2′‐bipyridine as a ligand. The polymerization proceeded smoothly in dimethyl sulphoxide with higher than 90% conversion in 13 h at 25 °C. The polymerization kept the features of controlled radical polymerization. ¹H NMR spectra proved that the resultant polymer was end‐capped by ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate species. Such polymerization technique was also successfully introduced to conduct the copolymerization of styrene (St) and AN to obtain well‐controlled copolymers of St and AN at 25 °C, in which the monomer conversion of St could reach to higher than 90%. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Catalytic effect of ionic liquids in the Cu2O/2,2′‐bipyridine catalyzed living radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate initiated with arenesulfonyl chlorides

The effect of 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ionic liquid on the living radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate initiated with arenesulfonyl chlorides and catalyzed by the self‐regulated Cu₂O/2,2′‐bipyridine catalyst was investigated. A dramatic acceleration of the living radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate in this ionic liquid was discovered. This accelerated living radical polymerization maintained an initiation efficiency of 100%, eliminated the induction period of this catalyst, and produced poly(methyl methacrylate) with molecular weight distribution of 1.1 and perfect bifunctional chain‐ends. The kinetic analysis of the living radical polymerization in the presence of ionic liquid demonstrated a rate constant of propagation that follows an almost first order of reaction on the ionic liquid concentration and therefore, the ionic liquid exhibits catalytic effect. The catalytic effect of the ionic liquid facilitated the reduction of the catalyst concentration from stoichiometric to catalytic and allowed the decrease of the polymerization temperature from 80 to 22 °C. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 5609–5619, 2005