Homo-telechelic polymers polymerization

Watson and Wagener [95] reported a tandem ADMET polymerization/ hydrogenation approach to acetoxy-end-functionalized telechelic polyethylene. DCD was polymerized in the presence of 9-decenyl acetate to form the corresponding di-ester-functionalized homo-telechelic polymer. The crude unsaturated polymer was intimately mixed with silica gel and exposed to 120 psi of H2 at 90 °C. The silica gel was added to suppress catalyst homo-dimerization, and the hydrogenated polymer was recovered as the di-ester-functionalized telechelic polyethylene with a molecular weight of 1.5 X 10 g moD fDP = 48) and a PDI of 1.9. 

Advantages of end-group transformation include the ability to incorporate functionality incompatible with the polymerization procedure, to prepare halogen-free materials for subsequent reactive processing, to allow characterization of the initial copolymer prior to further functionalization, and an ability to prepare telechelic polymers, block copolymers, and materials that can be immobilized to surfaces, by a full range of substitution and addition chemistry. The use of a difunctional initiator allowed for the first time in a radical process preparation of functional homo-telechelic polymers with almost any desired chain end functionality (Scheme 33). ... 

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