| Abstract: | Copolymerization of an isocyanide giving an insoluble homopolymer with another isocyanide giving a soluble homopolymer in ethanol solution using 0.5–1% of a nickel (II) catalyst in many cases gives a soluble copolymer containing pendant groups arising from both isocyanides. Thus, methyl isocyanide, which gives an insoluble homopolymer, gives chloroform-soluble copolymers incorporating 39–44% of pendant methyl groups when copolymerized with equimolar amounts of tert-butyl isocyanide or several aryl isocyanides. Similarly, cyclohexyl isocyanide, which also gives an insoluble homopolymer, gives chloroform-soluble copolymers incorporating 43–59% of pendant cyclohexyl groups when copolymerized with equimolar amounts of several aryl isocyanides. The compositions, chloroform solubilities, and polystyrene equivalent molecular weights are given for 33 different copolymers obtained by copolymerizations of various equimolar binary mixtures of the monomers CH3NC, (CH3)3CNC, cyclo-C6H11NC, C2H5NC, CH3CH?CHNC,(CH3)2C?CHNC, 2,4,6-(CH3)3C6H2CH?CHNC, C6H5CH(CH3)NC, CH2?CHNC, (CH3)3CCH?CHNC, C6H5NC, 2- and 4-CH3C6H4NC and 2-, 3-, 4-CH3OC6H4NC using the nickel (II) catalyst system. |
