Polymers with pendant maleimide groups

Tunca et al. [27, 28,38] reported in a series of papers on a multi-click approach for the preparation of brush copolymers. The backbone consisted of homopolymers, statistical polymers, or block copolymers from ONBEs with orthogonal side groups for Diels-Alder click reaction [27,28,38], azide/alkyne click reaction, [27, 28, 38] and nitroxide coupling [27]. In a grafting-to approach, maleimide-or ONBE-functionalized polymers (PEG, P BA, PMMA (56)) were attached by Diels-Alder click reaction with the anthracene groups pendant at the polymer backbone (55) (Scheme 9.8b). PCL chains were attached by an azide/alkyne click reaction, while a combination of Diels-Alder and azide/alkyne click reaction allowed the synthesis of graft copolymers with PS-/ -PEG-, PS-h-PMMA-, or PS-/ -P BA side chains. 

In 1969, Craven reported the first example of the DA reaction with the furan/ maleimide system [136]. He synthesized polymers which consisted of chains of the saturated condensation polymer backbone bearing the furan group reacted with maleimides. Since then several patents and papers have been published, all concerning the fabrication of a thermally reversible polymer network bearing DA-reactive furan and maleimide units, either as pendant groups (for reversible cross-linking) [137-147], or as part of the polymer backbone (for reversible polymerization) [148-154]. 

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