Multifunctional ATRP initiators: Synthesis of four‐arm star homopolymers of methyl methacrylate and graft copolymers of polystyrene and poly(t‐butyl methacrylate)

Tetrakis bromomethyl benzene was used as a tetrafunctional initiator in the synthesis of four‐armed star polymers of methyl methacrylate via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) with a CuBr/2,2 bipyridine catalytic system and benzene as a solvent. Relatively low polydispersities were achieved, and the experimental molecular weights were in agreement with the theoretical ones. A combination of 2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl piperidine‐N‐oxyl‐mediated free‐radical polymerization and ATRP was used to synthesize various graft copolymers with polystyrene backbones and poly(t‐butyl methacrylate) grafts. In this case, the backbone was produced with a 2,2,6,6‐tetramethyl piperidine‐N‐oxyl‐mediated stable free‐radical polymerization process from the copolymerization of styrene and p‐(chloromethyl) styrene. This polychloromethylated polymer was used as an ATRP multifunctional initiator for t‐butyl methacrylate polymerization, giving the desired graft copolymers. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 650–655, 2001     

Synthesis of well‐defined polymer brushes on the surface of zinc antimonate nanoparticles through surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization

Zinc antimonate nanoparticles consisting of antimony and zinc oxide were surface modified in a methanol solvent medium using triethoxysilane‐based atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) initiating group (i.e.,) 6‐(2‐bromo‐2‐methyl) propionyloxy hexyl triethoxysilane. Successful grafting of ATRP initiator on the surface of nanoparticles was confirmed by thermogravimetric analysis that shows a significant weight loss at around 250–410 °C. Grafting of ATRP initiator onto the surface was further corroborated using Fourier transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR) and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The surface‐initiated ATRP of methyl methacrylate (MMA) mediated by a copper complex was carried out with the initiator‐fixed zinc antimonate nanoparticles in the presence of a sacrificial (free) initiator. The polymerization was preceded in a living manner in all examined cases; producing nanoparticles coated with well defined poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) brushes with molecular weight in the range of 35–48K. Furthermore, PMMA‐grafted zinc antimonate nanoparticles were characterized using Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) that exhibit significant weight loss in the temperature range of 300–410 °C confirming the formation of polymer brushes on the surface with the graft density as high as 0.26–0.27 chains/nm². The improvement in the dispersibility of PMMA‐grafted zinc antimonate nanoparticles was verified using ultraviolet‐visible spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

A new tetradentate ligand for atom transfer radical polymerization

The properties of a ligand, including molecular structure and substituents, strongly affect the catalyst activity and control of the polymerization in atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). A new tetradentate ligand, N,N′‐bis(pyridin‐2‐ylmethyl‐3‐hexoxo‐3‐oxopropyl)ethane‐1,2‐diamine (BPED) was synthesized and examined as the ligand of copper halide for ATRP of styrene (St), methyl acrylate (MA), and methyl methacrylate (MMA), and compared with other analogous linear tetrdendate ligands. The BPED ligand was found to significantly promote the activation reaction: the CuBr/BPED complex reacted with the initiators so fast that a large amount of Cu(II)Br₂/BPED was produced and thus the polymerizations were slow for all the monomers. The reaction of CuCl/BPED with the initiator was also fast, but by reducing the catalyst concentration or adding CuCl₂, the activation reaction could be slowed to establish the equilibrium of ATRP for a well‐controlled living polymerization of MA. CuCl/BPED was found very active for the polymerization of MA. For example, 10 mol% of the catalyst relatively to the initiator was sufficient to mediate a living polymerization of MA. The CuCl/BPED, however, could not catalyze a living polymerization of MMA because the resulting CuCl₂/BPED could not deactivate the growing radicals. The effects of the ligand structures on the catalysis of ATRP are also discussed. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 3553–3562, 2004     

Synthesis of poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) in protic media through atom transfer radical polymerization using activators generated by electron transfer

Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) using activators generated by electron transfer (AGET) was investigated for the controlled polymerization of 2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) in a protic solvent, a 3/2 (v/v) mixture of methyl ethyl ketone and methanol. The AGET process enabled ATRP to be started with an air‐stable Cu(II) complex that was reduced in situ by tin(II) 2‐ethylhexanoate. The reaction temperature, Cu catalysts with different ligands, and variation of the initial concentration ratio of HEMA to the initiator were examined for the synthesis of well‐controlled poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and a poly(methyl methacrylate)‐b‐poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate) block copolymer. The level of control in AGET ATRP was similar to that in normal ATRP in protic solvents, and this resulted in a linear increase in the molecular weight with the conversion and a narrow molecular weight distribution (weight‐average molecular weight/number‐average molecular weight < 1.3). © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 3787–3796, 2006     

Atom transfer radical polymerization of n‐butyl acrylate catalyzed by CuBr/N‐(n‐hexyl)‐2‐pyridylmethanimine

The homogeneous atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of n‐butyl acrylate with CuBr/N‐(n‐hexyl)‐2‐pyridylmethanimine as a catalyst and ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate as an initiator was investigated. The kinetic plots of ln([M]₀/[M]) versus the reaction time for the ATRP systems in different solvents such as toluene, anisole, N,N‐dimethylformamide, and 1‐butanol were linear throughout the reactions, and the experimental molecular weights increased linearly with increasing monomer conversion and were very close to the theoretical values. These, together with the relatively narrow molecular weight distributions (polydispersity index ～ 1.40 in most cases with monomer conversion > 50%), indicated that the polymerization was living and controlled. Toluene appeared to be the best solvent for the studied ATRP system in terms of the polymerization rate and molecular weight distribution among the solvents used. The polymerization showed zero order with respect to both the initiator and the catalyst, probably because of the presence of a self‐regulation process at the beginning of the reaction. The reaction temperature had a positive effect on the polymerization rate, and the optimum reaction temperature was found to be 100 °C. An apparent enthalpy of activation of 81.2 kJ/mol was determined for the ATRP of n‐butyl acrylate, corresponding to an enthalpy of equilibrium of 63.6 kJ/mol. An apparent enthalpy of activation of 52.8 kJ/mol was also obtained for the ATRP of methyl methacrylate under similar reaction conditions. Moreover, the CuBr/N‐(n‐hexyl)‐2‐pyridylmethanimine‐based system was proven to be applicable to living block copolymerization and living random copolymerization of n‐butyl acrylate with methyl methacrylate. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 3549–3561, 2002     

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     

Facile synthesis of AB2‐type miktoarm star polymers through the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and ring‐opening polymerization

A novel miktofunctional initiator ( 1 ), 2‐hydroxyethyl 3‐[(2‐bromopropanoyl)oxy]‐2‐{[(2‐bromopropanoyl)oxy]methyl}‐2‐methyl‐propanoate, possessing one initiating site for ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) and two initiating sites for atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), was synthesized in a three‐step reaction sequence. This initiator was first used in the ROP of ?‐caprolactone, and this led to a corresponding polymer with secondary bromide end groups. The obtained poly(?‐caprolactone) (PCL) was then used as a macroinitiator for the ATRP of tert‐butyl acrylate or methyl methacrylate, and this resulted in AB₂‐type PCL–[poly(tert‐butyl acrylate)]₂ or PCL–[poly(methyl methacrylate)]₂ miktoarm star polymers with controlled molecular weights and low polydispersities (weight‐average molecular weight/number‐average molecular weight < 1.23) via the ROP–ATRP sequence. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2313–2320, 2004     

Atom transfer radical copolymerization of acrylonitrile and ethyl methacrylate at ambient temperature

Copolymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) and ethyl methacrylate (EMA) using copper‐based atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) at ambient temperature (30 °C) using various initiators has been investigated with the aim of achieving control over molecular weight distribution. The effect of variation of concentration of the initiator, ligand, catalyst, and temperature on the molecular weight distribution and kinetics were investigated. No polymerization at ambient temperature was observed with N,N,N′,N′,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine (PMDETA) ligand. The rate of polymerization exhibited 0.86 order dependence with respect to 2‐bromopropionitrile (BPN) initiator. The first‐order kinetics was observed using BPN as initiator, while curvature in first‐order kinetic plot was obtained for ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate (EBiB) and methyl 2‐bromopropionate (MBP), indicating that termination was taking place. Successful polymerization was also achieved with catalyst concentrations of 25 and 10% relative to initiator without loss of control over polymerization. The optimum [bpy]₀/[CuBr]₀ molar ratio for the copolymerization of AN and EMA through ATRP was found to be 3/1. For three different in‐feed ratios, the variation of copolymer composition (F_AN) with conversion indicated toward the synthesis of copolymers having slight changes in composition with conversion. The high chain‐end functionality of the synthesized AN‐EMA copolymers was verified by further chain extension with methyl acrylate and styrene. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 1975–1984, 2006     

Atom transfer radical polymerization of N‐vinyl carbazole: Optimization to characterization

The homopolymerization of N‐vinylcarbazole was performed with atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) with Cu(I)/Cu(II)/2,2′‐bipyridine (bpy) as the catalyst system at 90 °C in toluene. N‐2‐Bromoethyl carbazole was used as the initiator, and the optimized ratio of Cu(I) to Cu(II) was found to be 1/0.3. The resulting homopolymer, poly(N‐vinylcarbazole) (PVK), was formed after a monomer conversion of 76% in 20 h. The molecular weight as well as the polydispersity index (PDI) showed a linear relation with the conversion, which showed control over the polymerization. A semilogarithmic plot of the monomer conversion with time was linear, indicating the presence of constant active species throughout the polymerization. The initiator efficiency and the effect of the variation of the initiator concentration on the polymerization were studied. The effects of the addition of CuBr₂, the variation of the catalyst concentration with respect to the initiator, and CuX (X = Br or Cl) on the kinetics of homopolymerization were determined. With Cu(0)/CuBr₂/bpy as the catalyst, faster polymerization was observed. For a chain‐extension experiments, PVK (number‐average molecular weight = 1900; PDI = 1.24) was used as a macroinitiator for the ATRP of methyl methacrylate, and this resulted in the formation of a block copolymer that gave a monomodal curve in gel permeation chromatography. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 1745–1757, 2006     

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     

Template atom transfer radical polymerization of a diaminopyrimidine‐derivatized monomer in the presence of a uracil‐containing polymer

Uracil‐derivatized monomer 6‐undecyl‐1‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)uracil and diaminopyrimidine‐derivatized monomer 2,6‐dioctanoylamido‐4‐methacryloyloxypyrimidine (DMP) were synthesized and polymerized by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). A well‐defined, highly soluble, uracil‐containing polymer, poly[6‐undecyl‐1‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)uracil] (PUVU), was prepared in dioxane at 90 °C with CuBr/1,1,4,7,10,10‐hexamethyltriethylenetetramine as the catalyst and methyl α‐bromophenylacetate as the initiator. PUVU was further used as a template for the ATRP of DMP. The enhanced apparent rate constant of the DMP polymerization in the presence of PUVU indicated that the ATRP of DMP occurred along the PUVU template. The template polymerization produced a stable and insoluble macromolecular complex, PUVU/poly(2,6‐dioctanoylamido‐4‐methacryloyloxypyrimidine). An X‐ray diffraction study confirmed that the complex had strandlike domains. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 6607–6615, 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     

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     

Atom transfer radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate by copper(I)‐pyridine‐2‐carboximidate catalysts

Pyridine‐2‐carboximidates [methyl ( 1a ), ethyl ( 1b ), isopropyl ( 1c ), cyclopentyl ( 1d ), cyclohexyl ( 1e ), n‐octyl ( 1f ), and benzyl ( 1g )] were prepared from the reaction of 2‐cyanopyridine with the corresponding alcohols. Cyclopentyl‐substituted 1d was found to be a highly effective ligand for copper‐catalyzed atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) of methyl methacrylate (MMA). For example, the observed rate constant for a CuBr/ 1d catalytic system was found to be nearly twice as high as the cyclohexyl‐substituted CuBr/ 1e catalytic system [k_obs = (1.19 vs 0.56) × 10^?4 s^?1). The effects of the solvents, temperature, catalyst/initiator, and solvent/monomer ratio on the ATRP of MMA were studied systematically for the CuBr/ 1d catalytic system. The optimum condition for the ATRP of MMA was found to be a 1:2:1:400 [CuBr]_o/[ 1d ]_o/[ethyl 2‐bromoisobutyrate]_o/[MMA]_o ratio at 60 °C in veratrole solution, which yielded well‐defined poly(MMA) with a narrow molecular weight distribution of 1.14. The catalytically active copper complex 2d was isolated from the reaction of CuBr with 1d . Narrow molecular weight distributions as low as 1.06 were achieved for the CuBr/ 1d catalytic system by employing 10% of the deactivator CuBr₂. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 42: 2747–2755, 2004     

Synthesis of liquid crystalline–amorphous block copolymers by the combination of atom transfer and photoinduced radical polymerization mechanisms

The synthesis of ABA‐type block copolymers, involving liquid‐crystalline 6‐(4‐cyanobiphenyl‐4′‐oxy)hexyl acrylate (LC6) and styrene (St) monomer with copper‐based atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and photoinduced radical polymerization (PIRP), was studied. First, photoactive α‐methylol benzoin methyl ether was esterified with 2‐bromopropionyl bromide, and it was subsequently used for ATRP of LC6 in diphenylether in conjunction with CuBr/N,N,N′,N″,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine as a catalyst. The obtained photoactive functional liquid‐crystalline polymer, poly[6‐(4‐cyanobiphenyl‐4′‐oxy)hexyl acrylate] (PLC6), was used as an initiator in PIRP of St. Similarly, photoactive polystyrenes were also synthesized and employed for the block copolymerization of LC6 in the second stage. The spectral, thermal, and optical measurements confirmed a full combination of ATRP and PIRP, which resulted in the formation of ABA‐type block copolymers with very narrow polydispersities. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 1892–1903, 2003     

Preparation of polymer‐grafted carbon black nanoparticles by surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization

Pristine carbon black was oxidized with nitric acid to produce carboxyl group, and then the carboxyl group was consecutively treated with thionyl chloride and glycol to introduce hydroxyl group. The hydroxyl group on the carbon black surface was reacted with 2‐bromo‐2‐methylpropionyl bromide to anchor atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) initiator. The ATRP initiator on carbon black surface was verified by TGA, FTIR, EDS, and elemental analysis. Then, poly (methyl methacrylate) and polystyrene chains were respectively, grown from carbon black surface by surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI‐ATRP) using CuCl/2,2‐dipyridyl (bpy) as the catalyst/ligand combination at 110 °C in anisole. ¹H NMR, TGA, TEM, AFM, DSC, and DLS were used to systemically characterize the polymer‐grafted carbon black nanoparticles. Dispersion experiments showed that the grafted carbon black nanoparticles had good solubilities in organic solvents such as THF, chloroform, dichloromethane, DMF, etc. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 3451–3459, 2007     

Divergent synthesis of dendrimer‐like macromolecules through a combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and click reaction

This article describes a divergent strategy to prepare dendrimer‐like macromolecules from vinyl monomers through a combination of atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and click reaction. Firstly, star‐shaped polystyrene (PS) with three arms was prepared through ATRP of styrene starting from a three‐arm initiator. Next, the terminal bromides of the star‐shaped PS were substituted with azido groups. Afterwards, the azido‐terminated star‐shaped PS was reacted with propargyl 2,2‐bis((2′‐bromo‐2′‐methylpropanoyloxy)methyl)propionate (PBMP) via click reaction. Star‐shaped PS with six terminal bromide groups was afforded and served as the initiator for the polymerization of styrene to afford the second‐generation dendrimer‐like PS. Iterative process of the aforementioned sequence of reactions could allow the preparation of the third‐generation dendrimer‐like PS. When the second‐generation dendrimer‐like PS with 12 bromide groups used as an initiator for the polymerization of tert‐butyl acrylate, the third‐generation dendrimer‐like block copolymer with a PS core and a poly (tert‐butyl acrylate) (PtBA) corona was afforded. Subsequently PtBA segments were selectively hydrolyzed with hydrochloric acid, resulting an amphiphilic branched copolymer with inner dendritic PS and outer linear poly(acrylic acid) (PAA). Following the same polymerization procedures, the dendrimer‐like PS and PS‐block‐PtBA copolymers of second generation originating from six‐arm initiator were also synthesized. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 3330–3341, 2007     

Symmetrical polymer systems prepared using a degradable bifunctional atom transfer radical polymerization initiator: Synthesis,characterization, and cleavage

Linear (co)polymers and dimethacrylate‐end‐linked polymer networks of methyl methacrylate with 2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate, cleavable in the middle of the polymer chain, either under thermolysis or alkaline hydrolysis conditions, were prepared via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) using a specially designed bifunctional degradable initiator. This initiator was 2,6‐pyridinediethanol di(2‐bromo‐2‐methyl propanoate) (PyDEDBrMeP), bearing two 2‐(pyridin‐2‐yl)ethyl ester moieties, known for their thermal and hydrolytic (alkaline conditions) lability. As a control, a more stable bifunctional ATRP initiator, 2,6‐pyridinedimethanol di(2‐bromo‐2‐methyl propanoate) (PyDMDBrMeP), was also synthesized together with the corresponding linear polymers and polymer networks prepared from it. Thermal or hydrolytic treatment of the polymers prepared using PyDEDBrMeP led to a reduction in the molecular weights of the linear polymers by a factor of two, and to the conversion of the polymer networks to soluble branched (star) structures, consistent with the expected cleavage of the initiator residue located in the middle of the polymer chain. Thermal treatment of the polymers prepared using PyDMDBrMeP did not affect their molecular weight due to the thermal stability of the (pyridin‐2‐yl)methyl ester group, while treatment under alkaline hydrolysis conditions resulted in complete cleavage, similar to the PyDEDBrMeP‐prepared polymers. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2017 , 55, 2342–2355     

Synthesis of polymeric core–shell particles using surface‐initiated living free‐radical polymerization

An easy and novel approach to the synthesis of functionalized nanostructured polymeric particles is reported. The surfactant‐free emulsion polymerization of methyl methacrylate in the presence of the crosslinking reagent 2‐ethyl‐2‐(hydroxy methyl)‐1,3‐propanediol trimethacrylate was used to in situ crosslink colloid micelles to produce stable, crosslinked polymeric particles (diameter size ～ 100–300 nm). A functionalized methacrylate monomer, 2‐methacryloxyethyl‐2′‐bromoisobutyrate, containing a dormant atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) living free‐radical initiator, which is termed an inimer (initiator/monomer), was added to the solution during the polymerization to functionalize the surface of the particles with ATRP initiator groups. The surface‐initiated ATRP of different monomers was then carried out to produce core–shell‐type polymeric nanostructures. This versatile technique can be easily employed for the design of a wide variety of polymeric shells surrounding a crosslinked core while keeping good control over the sizes of the nanostructures. The particles were characterized with scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, optical microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and Raman spectroscopy. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 1575–1584, 2007     

Synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate) via ARGET ATRP and study of the effect of solvents and temperatures on its polymerization kinetics

This investigation reports the synthesis of poly(methyl methacrylate) via activators regenerated by electron transfer atom transfer radical polymerization (ARGET ATRP) and studies the effect of solvents and temperature on its polymerization kinetics. ARGET ATRP of methyl methacrylate (MMA) was carried out in different solvents and at different temperatures using CuBr₂ as catalyst in combination with N,N,N′,N″,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine as a ligand. Methyl 2‐chloro propionate was used as ATRP initiator and ascorbic acid was used as a reducing agent in the ARGET ATRP of MMA. The conversion was measured gravimetrically. The semilogarithmic plot of monomer conversion versus time was found to be linear, indicating that the polymerization follows first‐order kinetics. The linear polymerization kinetic plot also indicates the controlled nature of the polymerization. N,N‐Dimethylformamide (DMF), tetrahydrofuran (THF), toluene, and methyl ethyl ketone were used as solvents to study the effect on the polymerization kinetics. The effect of temperature on the kinetics of the polymerization was also studied at various temperatures. It has been observed that polymerization followed first‐order kinetics in every case. The rate of polymerization was found to be highest (k_app = 6.94 × 10⁻³ min⁻¹) at a fixed temperature when DMF was used as solvent. Activation energies for ARGET ATRP of MMA were also calculated using the Arrhenius equation.