Complex triarylsulfonium salt photoinitiators. I. The identification,characterization, and syntheses of a new class of triarylsulfonium salt photoinitiators

Dilphenyl-4-thiophenoxyphenylsulfonium salts have been found to be more efficient cationic photoinitiators than the highly photoactive triphenylsulfonium salts. The former compounds were identified as by-products produced in the preparation of triphenylsulfonium chloride from benzene, chlorine, sulfur monochloride, and aluminum chloride. Confirmation of the structure was made by NMR and UV spectroscopy as well as by independent synthesis. The photoinitiated cationic polymerization of cyclohexene oxide and other epoxy monomers was carried out to demonstrate the higher efficiency of diphenyl-4-thiophenoxysulfonium hexafluoroarsenate as compared to the corresponding triphenylsulfonium salt.     

Photoinitiation of cationic polymerization. III. Photosensitization of diphenyliodonium and triphenylsulfonium salts

Photoinitiated cationic polymerization by photosensitization of diphenyliodonium and triphenylsulfonium salts is shown to proceed by two distinct electron transfer process: (1) direct electron transfer from excited-state photosensitizers and (2) indirect electron transfer from photogenerated radicals. The efficiency of the former process is attributed to the instability of the reduction products (from diphenyliodonium and triphenylsulfonium salts), which dissociate in competition with undergoing energy-wastage reverse electron transfer. Amplification of photons in the production of protons (or other reactive cations) is postulated to account for the high quantum yields observed in the latter process. Potential advantages of utilizing the indirect redox process in the design of UV curable hybrid systems, which contain functionality for both radical and cationic polymerization, are noted. The results also provide evidence against the importance of triplet states of the onium salts in photoinitiator activity.     

Degradable epoxy coatings by photoinitiated cationic copolymerization of bisepoxide with ε-caprolactone

Thermal and hydrolytical degradable epoxy coatings based on bis-phenol-A-diglycidyl ether (DGEBA) and ε-caprolactone (CL) were prepared by photoinitiated cationic polymerization using triphenylsulfonium hexafluoroantimonate (Ph₃S⁺SbF₆⁻) as photoinitiator. The photopolymerization kinetics were followed by real-time FT-IR analysis. The effect CL concentration on the rate of polymerization was demonstrated. Mechanical properties of the resulting networks were studied by dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). Thermal and hydrolytical degradation investigations were also performed. Higher degradability of the cured films with the increasing content of CL in the formulation suggests that UV cured coatings obtained this way can potentially be used as reworkable thermosets.     

Complex triarylsulfonium salt photoinitiators. II. The preparation of several new complex triarylsulfonium salts and the influence of their structure in photoinitiated cationic polymerization

Complex triarylsulfonium salts bearing the thiophenoxy chromophore have been synthesized. The effects of the position of attachment of the thiophenoxy group on the rate of photolysis and in the photoinitiated cationic polymerization of various monomers have been investigated. Other salts in which the thiophenoxy group has been oxidized to the sulfoxide and the sulfone also were prepared to examine the effects of the oxidation state of the sulfur-bearing chromophore on the efficiencies in photoinitiated cationic polymerization. All complex salts having extended conjugation not impeded through positional isomerization or blocked through oxidation of the thiophenoxy chromophore are more reactive than the corresponding triphenylsulfonium salts in cationic polymerization.     

Cationic photopolymerization of tetrahydrofuran: A mechanistic study on the use of a sulfonium salt–phenothiazine initiation system

The kinetics aspects of the photoinitiated polymerization of tetrahydrofuran with triphenylsulfonium hexafluoroarsenate and sensitized by phenothiazine was studied under visible‐light irradiation. A photosensitizer mechanism was proposed involving electron transfer from phenothiazine to the triphenylsulfonium salt, forming a cation radical, the true precursor of the polymerization. An initial complex in the ground state between the phenothiazine and the triphenylsulfonium was formed prior to the excitation, and this complex actually activated the photopolymerization rate. The polymerization conversion presented an S‐shaped curve, suggesting an induction period caused by the existence of two pathways responsible for the beginning of the polymerization. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 46–55, 2001     

Photoinitiated transformations of triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate

The spectral effects were investigated in the transformations of the photoinitiator of the cationic polymerization of epoxide compounds, i.e., triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate (TSHP), in the solid state (in a tablet with potassium bromide), in propylene oxide, and in its oligomer. Absorption bands sensitive to the phototransformations of the initiator were found. Since a high yield of the products from the photolysis of TSHP must be expected under the experimental conditions, it seemed of interest to study the substance precipitated during the photochemical polymerization of propylene oxide in the presence of the photoinitiator. Small differences were found between the IR spectra of the initial initiator and of the precipitate. The spectral effects accompanying irradiation of the precipitate the UV light are identical with those observed for the initial photoinitiator. The effectiveness of the precipitated substance as photoinitiator for the polymerization of propylene oxide and epoxide resin UP-650T is comparable with the photoinitiating activity of TSHP.Translated from Teoreticheskaya i Éksperimental'naya Khimiya, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 325–331, May–June, 1990.     

Photoinitiated cationic polymerization of monofunctional benzoxazine

The photoinitiated ring‐opening cationic polymerization of a monofunctional benzoxazine, 3‐phenyl‐3,4‐dihydro‐2H‐1,3‐benzoxazine, with onium salts such as diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate and triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate as initiators was examined. The structures of the polymers thus formed were complex and related to the ring‐opening process of the protonated monomer either at the oxygen or nitrogen atoms. The phenolic mechanism also contributed, but its influence decreased with decreasing monomer concentration. Thermal properties of the polymers were also investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 3320–3328, 2003     

Cationic photopolymerization of 1,3-di(9-carbazolyl)-2-propanol glycidyl ether

An absorbance probe method was used for the investigation of photolysis of cationic photoinitiators. The rates of the photolysis of diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate (DPIH), diphenyliodonium tetrafluoroborate (DPIB), di(tert-butylphenyl)iodonium tetrafluoroborate (DTIB), di(tert-butylphenyl)iodonium bromate (DTIBr), triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate (TPS) and cyclopropyldiphenylsulfonium tetrafluoroborate (CPS) were studied in the presence of acid indicator quinaldine red (QR) in acetonitrile. Diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate and triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate showed the highest photolysis rate. Photopolymerization of 1,3-di(9-carbazolyl)-2-propanol glycidyl ether (DCPGE) initiated with the iodonium and sulfonium salts in bulk and in solution was studied. It was established that the highest initial rate of polymerization is characteristic of DCPGE photopolymerization initiated with DPIH and TPS in bulk. The oligomers of DCPGE of number average molecular weight ( [`(M<sub>n</sub>)]\overline{M_n} ) ranging from 710 to 1220 were obtained in these reactions in bulk and those with [`(M_n)]\overline{M_n} ranging from 1300 to 1600 were obtained in solution.     

Cationic RAFT Polymerization Using ppm Concentrations of Organic Acid

A metal‐free, cationic, reversible addition–fragmentation chain‐transfer (RAFT) polymerization was proposed and realized. A series of thiocarbonylthio compounds were used in the presence of a small amount of triflic acid for isobutyl vinyl ether to give polymers with controlled molecular weight of up to 1×10⁵ and narrow molecular‐weight distributions (M_w/M_n<1.1). This “living” or controlled cationic polymerization is applicable to various electron‐rich monomers including vinyl ethers, p‐methoxystyrene, and even p‐hydroxystyrene that possesses an unprotected phenol group. A transformation from cationic to radical RAFT polymerization enables the synthesis of block copolymers between cationically and radically polymerizable monomers, such as vinyl ether and vinyl acetate or methyl acrylate.     

Synthesis and photopolymerization of 1-propenyl glycidyl ether

The ambifunctional monomer, 1-propenyl glycidyl ether, was prepared from allyl glycidyl ether, by a ruthenium-catalyzed isomerization reaction in high yield. 1-Propenyl glycidyl ether undergoes facile photoinduced cationic polymerization to yield a crosslinked polymer. The structure of this polymer was studied using ¹H- and, ¹³C-NMR spectroscopies and employing well-characterized related polymers as models. The model polymers were prepared by the cationic polymerization of allyl glycidyl ether with BF₃OEt₂ followed by isomerization of the pendant allyl groups by a ruthenium catalyst. Subsequently, the resulting polyether-bearing pendant 1-propenyl ether groups was subjected to a diaryliodonium salt-photoinitiated polymerization. A comparison of the spectra of the polymers indicated the presence of cyclic acetal units in the polymer backbone. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The formation of radical cations of styrene and α-methylstyrene in the irradiation of mixtures of these monomers with TiCl4 and SnCl4 in a semicrystalline heptane matrix

The formation of paramagnetic intermediates following the irradiation of styrene, α-methylstyrene, and their mixtures at ?90°C in the presence of TiCl⁴ and SnCl⁴ in the polycrystalline heptane matrix was investigated. The effect of light on vinyl aromatic monomers leads to the formation of radical cations of styrene and α-methylstyrene, which subsequently initiate the polymerization. The polymerization of styrene and α-methylstyrene supposedly proceeds via the cationic mechanism.     

Influence of irradiation conditions on the photochemical one step formation of analogs of polyepoxyacrylates

Simultaneous photoinitiated polymerization of epoxide resins and methacrylic acid in the presence of triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate has been studied. Reaction of the carboxyl group with epoxide has been observed in addition to homopolymerization. The extent of this interaction depends on the radiation regime. Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, National Academy of Sciences of the Ukraine, 48 Khar’kovskoe Shosse, 253160 Kiev, Ukraine. Translated from Teoreticheskiya i éksperimental’naya Khimiya, Vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 252–255, July–August, 1997.     

Dual Reactivity of Magnesium Compounds as Initiators for Anionic and Cationic Polymerization

Organomagnesium compounds are well known initiators of anionic polymerization of polar monomers. However, we have found recently that in the presence of compounds with labile halogen atoms, e.g., benzyl chloride, they are also active initiators of cationic polymerization of isobutylene and styrene in hydrocarbon media. The tentative scheme of cationic initiation is suggested assuming the formation of benzyl cation connected with Mg₂Cl₅⁻ counter-ion. The scheme is confirmed by quantum-chemical calculations and ¹H NMR analysis of polyisobutylene. On addition of a polar monomer, N,N-dimethylacrylamide or 2-vinylpyridine, to Bu₂Mg-BzCl-isobutylene polymerizing mixture, the former readily polymerizes. The mixture of homopolymers rather than block copolymers is formed in this case, however, this fact proves the co-existence of anionic and cationic centers in the system.     

A comparison of polymerization characteristics and mechanisms of ε-caprolactone and trimethylene-carbonate with rare earth halides

Characteristics and mechanisms of the ring opening-polymerizations of ε-caprolactone (CL) and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) with rare earth halides have been compared for the first time. It has been found that rare earth halides show high catalytic activities for the polymerization of TMC, but very low activities for that of CL polymerization. The copolymerization of CL and TMC can proceed only in the presence of high contents of TMC in the comonomer feed. The copolymerization rate decreases rapidly with increasing molar fraction of CL in the feed. The mechanism study by IR, ¹H-, ¹³C-, and ³¹P-NMR spectra shows that the first step reaction of the polymerization of TMC or CL with rare earth halide is the complexation of monomer to the rare earth ion. The strong coordination of TMC to rare earth ion induces the ring-cleavage of TMC and generation of the cationic species, which initiate the polymerization of TMC via a cationic process. However, the polymerization of CL with rare earth halide is an “activated-hydrolysis” process, in which rare earth catalyst does not initiate the polymerization but serves as an activator of CL. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 35 : 1339–1352, 1997     

Synthesis and photoinitiated cationic polymerization of 1,2,3-tris(1-propenoxy) propane

The synthesis of 1,2,3-tris (1-propenoxy) propane (GTPE) was carried out by the rearrangement of 1,2,3-tris(2-propenoxy) propane (glycerol triallyl ether, GTAE) and the Z: E isomer composition of the GTPE was determined using gas chromatography and ¹HNMR. The photoinitiated cationic polymerization of the GTPE was studied using realtime infrared spectroscopy (RTIR). Employing the data from these studies, rates of polymerization for the respective E and Z propenyl ether double bonds were calculated. The rate of incorporation of Z-double bonds of GTPE into the crosslinked polymer matrix is 1.6 times that of E-double bonds. The effects of oxygen and several other free radical polymerization inhibitors were investigated. An increase in the photogel time and decrease of the gel-content in the presence of these inhibitors implicates the involvement of free radicals in the process of the generation of propagating cationic centers when diaryliodonium salt cationic photoinitiators are used. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Organometallic polymers containing tricarbonyl(η4-diene)-ruthenium(0) and -iron(0) as pendant groups

Vinyl ethers containing tricarbonyl(14-η⁴-1,3-pentadiene)-ruthenium(0) and -iron(0) species were prepared utilizing selective dienylation with penta-dienylpotassium and were polymerized with cationic initiators to give high molecular weight polymers. The diene-metal moieties were converted into tricarbonyl(13-η³-allyl)metal species by protonation with dry HCl. Tricarbonyl(3-allyl-14-η⁴-1,3-pentadiene)iron(0) also undergoes cationic polymerization but the presence of its isomer, tricarbonyl(3-propenyl-14-η⁴-1,3-pentadiene)iron(0) inhibits the polymerization.     

Redox initiated cationic polymerization of oxetanes

3,3‐Disubstituted oxetane monomers were found to undergo rapid, exothermic redox initiated cationic ring‐opening polymerization in the presence of a diaryliodonium or triarylsulfonium salt oxidizing agent and a hydrosilane reducing agent. The redox reaction requires a noble metal complex as a catalyst and several potential catalysts were evaluated. The palladium complex, Cl₂(COD)Pd^II, was observed to provide good shelf life stability while, at the same time, affording high reactivity in the presence of a variety of hydrosilane reducing agents. A range of structurally diverse oxetane monomers undergo polymerization under redox cationic conditions. When a small amount of an alkylated epoxide was added as a “kick‐start” accelerator to these same oxetanes, the redox initiated cationic polymerizations were extraordinarily rapid owing to the marked reduction in the induction period. A mechanistic interpretation of these results is offered. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1854–1861     

Cationic photopolymerization of 1,3-di(9-carbazolyl)-2-propanol glycidyl ether

An absorbance probe method was used for the investigation of photolysis of cationic photoinitiators. The rates of the photolysis of diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate (DPIH), diphenyliodonium tetrafluoroborate (DPIB), di(tert-butylphenyl)iodonium tetrafluoroborate (DTIB), di(tert-butylphenyl)iodonium bromate (DTIBr), triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate (TPS) and cyclopropyldiphenylsulfonium tetrafluoroborate (CPS) were studied in the presence of acid indicator quinaldine red (QR) in acetonitrile. Diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate and triphenylsulfonium hexafluorophosphate showed the highest photolysis rate. Photopolymerization of 1,3-di(9-carbazolyl)-2-propanol glycidyl ether (DCPGE) initiated with the iodonium and sulfonium salts in bulk and in solution was studied. It was established that the highest initial rate of polymerization is characteristic of DCPGE photopolymerization initiated with DPIH and TPS in bulk. The oligomers of DCPGE of number average molecular weight ( ) ranging from 710 to 1220 were obtained in these reactions in bulk and those with ranging from 1300 to 1600 were obtained in solution. Correspondence: Ruta Lazauskaite, Juozas V. Grazulevicius, Department of Organic Technology, Kaunas University of Technology, Radvilenu plentas 19, LT-50254 Kaunas, Lithuania.     

Kinetics and thermodynamics of anionic polymerization of 2-methoxy-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxaphosphorinane

Kinetic activation parameters and thermodynamic functions describing the reversible anionic polymerization of 2-methoxy-2-oxo-1,3,2-dioxaphosphorinane (1,3-propylene methyl phosphate) were determined. Enthalpy and entropy of the anionic propagation ? depropagation equilibrium were found to be close to those found previously by the present authors for the cationic polymerization, while the activation parameters of propagation and depropagation differ substantially for both processes and reflect the differences in the involved mechanisms. Thus, data for anionic polymerization (and cationic polymerization in parentheses) are: ΔH_1s° = ?0.7 kcal/mole (?1.1); ΔS_1s° = ?2.8 cal/mole-deg (?5.4); ΔH_p^? = 26.7 kcal/mole, and ΔS_p^? = ?6.1 cal/mole-deg. The polymers obtained have low degrees of polymerization (DP _n ≤ 10) because of the extensive chain transfer, leaving cyclic end groups in macromolecules. The presence, structure and concentration of the end groups have been determined by ¹H-, ³¹P-, and ¹³C-NMR spectra.     

Structure of polypiperylene chain segments according to high-resolution 13C NMR spectra

The microstructure of stereoregular 1,4-trans-and 1,4-cis-polypiperylenes, as well as polymers prepared from the trans-and cis-piperylene isomers via cationic polymerization in the presence of TiCl₄, was studied by high-resolution ¹³C NMR spectroscopy. Polypiperylene synthesized through the cationic polymerization of the cis isomer had a more diversified morphology of the macromolecular chain, i.e., had higher relative amounts of 1,2-cis-units and combinations of irregular-addition 1,4-trans-units. It was shown that ¹³C NMR spectra give the most comprehensive and independent information on the details of structure of the piperylene macromolecular chain.