Boiling points deuterated solvents

The chemical structures of D-A alternating copolymers are routinely characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Again, since the polymer chains need to be properly solvated and dispersed to expose all of the characteristic protons, higher temperatures near 100 °C are necessary. Therefore, deuterated solvents with high boiling points, such as 1,1,2,2-tetra-chloroethane-D2 (C2D2CI4), are typically used. 

A routine sample on a 60-MHz instrument would require about 5-50 mg of the sample in about 0.4 mL solvent. A microtube consisting of a thick-wall capillary allows spectra to be obtained on less than 1 mg of sample. The use of FTNMR makes it possible to obtain spectra on amounts as small as 5 yrg. The ideal solvent should contain no protons in its smicture, be low-boiling point, nonpolar, and inert. Carbon tetrachloride is often used in non-FTNMR spectroscopy, depending if the sample is sufficiently soluble in it. The most widely used solvent is deuterated chloroform (CDCI3). 

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