Metathesis molecular weight

Olefin Metathesis. The olefin metathesis (dismutation) reaction (30), discovered by Eleuterio (31), converts olefins to lower and higher molecular weight olefins. For example, propylene is converted into ethylene and butene... 

The olefins that undergo metathesis include most simple and substituted olefins cycHc olefins give linear high molecular-weight polymers. The mechanism of the reaction is beheved to involve formation of carbene complexes that react via cycHc intermediates, ie, metaHacycles. Industrial olefin metathesis processes are carried out with soHd catalysts (30). 

A potential drawback of all the routes discussed thus far is that there is little control over polydispersity and molecular weight of the resultant polymer. Ringopening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) is a living polymerization method and, in theory, affords materials with low polydispersities and predictable molecular weights. This methodology has been applied to the synthesis of polyacctylcne by Feast [23], and has recently been exploited in the synthesis of PPV. Bicyclic monomer 12 [24] and cyclophane 13 [25) afford well-defined precursor polymers which may be converted into PPV 1 by thermal elimination as described in Scheme 1-4. 

Additionally, grafting molecular entities on surfaces has already allowed to discover several reactions the low temperature hydrogenolysis of alkanes including the depolymerization of polyolefins, the alkane metathesis and the cross-metathesis of methane and alkanes. These two latter reactions can allow higher molecular weight alkanes to be built. 

W02005/080456 Al, Lanxess Inc. Process for the preparation of low molecular weight hydrogenated nitrile rubber EP2028194 Al, Lanxess Deutschland GmbH Metathesis of nitrile rubbers in the presence of transition metal complex catalysts Press release Lanxess - New York Conference, New York City, USA, Monday August 28, 2006, Address by Dr. Ulrich Koemm LANXESS Concepts in Rubber ... 

We have reported the first example of a ring-opening metathesis polymerization in C02 [144,145]. In this work, bicyclo[2.2.1]hept-2-ene (norbornene) was polymerized in C02 and C02/methanol mixtures using a Ru(H20)6(tos)2 initiator (see Scheme 6). These reactions were carried out at 65 °C and pressure was varied from 60 to 345 bar they resulted in poly(norbornene) with similar conversions and molecular weights as those obtained in other solvent systems. JH NMR spectroscopy of the poly(norbornene) showed that the product from a polymerization in pure methanol had the same structure as the product from the polymerization in pure C02. More interestingly, it was shown that the cis/trans ratio of the polymer microstructure can be controlled by the addition of a methanol cosolvent to the polymerization medium (see Fig. 12). The poly(norbornene) prepared in pure methanol or in methanol/C02 mixtures had a very high trans-vinylene content, while the polymer prepared in pure C02 had very high ds-vinylene content. These results can be explained by the solvent effects on relative populations of the two different possible metal... 

In early studies of the molecular weight-regulating efficiency of various olefins in the metathesis polymerization of cyclopentene, the results of... 

Intermolecular metathesis of linseed and soybean oils, which are triglycerides of linoleic and linolenic acids, offers an alternative method of upgrading these drying oils into stand oils by a net increase of their molecular weights. 

Conversions of about 80% were obtained within a few minutes at 90°C. The polymer could also be cleaved by cross-metathesis with an excess of 4-octene which gave, as the main product, 9-tridecenyl-7-undecenoate, thus confirming the structure assignment as indicated in Eq. (62). The unsaturated lactone was also copolymerized with cyclooctene, 1,5-cy-clooctadiene, and cyclopentene under the previously stated conditions to afford linear copolymers which were high molecular weight, unsaturated, rubbery polyesters (110). 

Most recently it has been demonstrated that classical metathesis catalyst systems such as those shown above are capable of inducing ADMET condensation chemistry [34]. These classical systems, 15 and 16, are precursors to actual metal carbenes, and they must be activated with the presence of an alkylating agent such as tetrabutyltin or tributyltin hydride. The ADMET condensation chemistry proceeds at a reasonable rate and high molecular weight polymers can be obtained. 

K. Nomura, H. Morimoto, Y. Imanishi, Z. Ramhani, and Y. Geerts, Synthesis of high molecular weight rra i-poly(9,9-di- -octylfluorene-2,7-vinylene) by the acyclic diene metathesis polymerization using molybdenum catalysts, J. Polym. Sci., Part A Polym. Chem., 39 2463-2470, 2001. 

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