Functionalizable branched poly(ethylene oxide)s grafted from poly(1,3‐diisopropenylbenzene) backbones

A new method to synthesize functionalizable branched poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) is presented. Soluble linear poly(1,3‐diisopropenylbenzene) (1,3‐DIB) samples exhibiting one unsaturation per DIB unit in the chain were obtained through anionic polymerization. These unsaturations served, after reaction with a stoichiometric amount of cumyl‐potassium, as efficient initiators for the anionic polymerization of oxirane. Accurate characterization of these samples demonstrated that a far better control of the functionality is reached as compared to the case of poly(DVB) cores.