Living polymerization terminating agents

Regarding anion radical transfer, low-molecular weight azo compounds were used as terminating agents in anionic polymerizations. An interesting example is the addition of a living polystyrene chain to one nitrile group of AIBN [71]. The terminal styryl anion is likely to form... 

Most radicals are transient species. They (e.%. 1-10) decay by self-reaction with rates at or close to the diffusion-controlled limit (Section 1.4). This situation also pertains in conventional radical polymerization. Certain radicals, however, have thermodynamic stability, kinetic stability (persistence) or both that is conferred by appropriate substitution. Some well-known examples of stable radicals are diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH), nitroxides such as 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidin-A -oxyl (TEMPO), triphenylniethyl radical (13) and galvinoxyl (14). Some examples of carbon-centered radicals which are persistent but which do not have intrinsic thermodynamic stability are shown in Section 1.4.3.2. These radicals (DPPH, TEMPO, 13, 14) are comparatively stable in isolation as solids or in solution and either do not react or react very slowly with compounds usually thought of as substrates for radical reactions. They may, nonetheless, react with less stable radicals at close to diffusion controlled rates. In polymer synthesis these species find use as inhibitors (to stabilize monomers against polymerization or to quench radical reactions - Section 5,3.1) and as reversible termination agents (in living radical polymerization - Section 9.3). 

Chain transfer to methacrylate and similar maeromonomers has been discussed in Section 6.2.3.4. The first papers on the use of this process to achieve some of the characteristics of living polymerization appeared in 1995.380 The structure of macromonomer RAFT agents (163) is shown in Figure 9.3. An idealized reaction scheme for the case of a MMA terminated macromonomer is shown in Scheme 9.36. 

Termination occurs by transfer of a positive fragment, usually a proton, from the solvent or some transfer agent (often deliberately added), although other modes of termination are also known. Many anionic polymerizations are living polymerizations when the reaction components are appropriately chosen. 

Sequential addition of monomer works well in anionic polymerization for producing well-defined block copolymers [Morton, 1983 Morton and Fetters, 1977 Quirk, 1998 Rempp et al., 1988]. An AB diblock copolymer is produced by polymerization of monomer A to completion using an initiator such as butyllithium. Monomer B is then added to the living polyA carbanions. When B has reacted completely a terminating agent such as water or... 

The conditional killing agents may be monomers in their own right. For example, ethylene oxide added to living polystyrene terminates the polymerization of styrene. It is, therefore, a terminator in respect to styrene and, since it will not initiate polymerization of ethylene oxide at 0° C, or at lower temperatures, it is a terminator for polymerization under these conditions. However, if more ethylene oxide is added and the... 

Anionic reactions have no bimolecular termination mechanism and in the absence of impurities (water, alcohols, etc.) or transfer agents, the end remains active indefinitely (living center). Termination reactions are significant for both cationic and free-radical polymerizations. 

A series of at least 14 papers [200-208] have been published dealing with the synthesis of telechelic polymers or block copolymers from the radical polymerization of various vinyl monomers with substituted 1,1,2,2-tetraphenyl ethanes. These aromatic compounds, known for over a century [209], are efficient in radical polymerization [201,210], They behave as both initiators and terminating agents [200] that can be involved in living radical polymerization as illustrated in the following reaction ... 

Although in this example the authors claimed no living character to the synthesis, Opresnik et al. [227,228] described a similar synthesis in which some living character is seen. They also used disulfides as reversible termination agents in the presence of styrene, MMA and ethyl acrylate (EA). The first step involves the synthesis of polymeric precursor 48 under UV cleavage ... 

The Inifer technique enables us to fulfil some requirements of polymer architecture even in some radical processes. An amplified form may be applied, the Iniferter variant, where the radical initiator simultaneously acts as a transfer and terminating agent. Otsu et al. used sulphides and disulphides (tetraethylthiuram disulphide, PhSSPh, Ph2S, PhCH2SSCH2Ph) [96] and carbamates (benzyl-A,A-diethyldithiocarbamate, p-xylylene-A,7V-diethyl-dithiocarbamate) [97] in the photopolymerization of methyl methacrylate and styrene, and phenylazotriphenylmethane in the polymerization of methyl methacrylate [98]. Living radical polymerizations yield polymers with defined end groups or the required block copolymers. 

Reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization using 2,2 -azobisisobutyronitrile and either A, A-dimethyl-5-thiobenzoylthiopropionamide or A-dimethyl-5-thiobenzoylthioacetamide as chain transfer agents has been used to prepare low polydispersity poly(A, A-dimethylacrylamide). The chain transfer agents were unusually effective in suppressing free radical termination reaction, thereby mimicking a living polymerization reaction. 

Figure 5.10. Mechanism of atom-transfer radical living polymerization. In this process, addition of atom-transfer agents results in initiating radicals that react with monomers. Rather than terminating polymer growth, halogenated end units are formed that are capable of propagating chain growth when additional monomer is added.

Another route to synthesizing star polymers by living polymerization involves the use of multifunctional end-capping agents, but this method is not suited for metal-catalyzed radical polymerizations, at least so far, due to the lack of universal and convenient terminating agents, as described above (section III.B.2). 

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