Ferrocenylethyl methacrylate

The organometallic acrylates and methacrylates containing the ferrocene nucleus undergo ready radical-initiated homo- and copolymerization. Unlike the unusual kinetic behavior of vinylferrocene, the homopolymerization of ferrocenylethyl acrylate 13 (Scheme 10-4) and ferrocenylethyl methacrylate 14 (Scheme 10-4) was found to be first-order in monomer and half-order in initiator, similar to that of their organic analogs. In these monomers, the vinyl groups are removed from the influence of the ferrocene nucleus. Monomers developed using this concept will also be discussed later. 

Yang, Xie, and Wu reported the syntheses of 2-ferrocenylethyl methacrylate, acrylate, methacrylamide, and acrylamide.231 Scheme 2.44 shows the preparation of the water-soluble polymer 167 by the copolymerization of 2-ferrocenylacrylamide with isopropylacrylamide. Depending on the ratio of organometallic-to-organic units the copolymer possessed low critical solution temperatures (LCST) of 26-29°C. Comparatively the pure organic poly(lV-iso-propylacrylamide) possessed an LCST of 32°C. 

The homo- and copolymerization of 2-ferrocenylethyl acrylate and methacrylate was reported by Pittman and coworkers in the 1970s (Scheme 3). ° It was found that both 2-ferrocenylethyl acrylate and 2-ferrocenylethyl methacrylate were more reactive than ferrocenylmethyl acrylate (16). ... 

The first examples of organometallic polymers where an arene was coordinated to the transition metal appeared in the early 1970s. These were reported by Pittman and coworkers. "" The homopolymerizations and copolymerizations of many acrylate-, methacrylate-, and styrene-substituted arene monomers coordinated to chromiiun tricarbonyl. The copolymerization of the acrylate monomer 56 with 2-ferrocenylethyl acrylate 57 is shown in scheme 18. With the exception... 

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