Reverse atom transfer radical polymerization of dimethyl itaconate initiated by a new azo initiator: AIBME

Xin Zhang; HaiJun Ji; Hui Yang; Jie Yu; Jiaqi Wang; Liqun Zhang; Xinxin Zhou; Runguo Wang

doi:10.1039/d1ra08878e

Reverse atom transfer radical polymerization of dimethyl itaconate initiated by a new azo initiator: AIBME

RSC Adv. 2022 May 4;12(21):13347-13351. doi: 10.1039/d1ra08878e. eCollection 2022 Apr 28.

Authors

Xin Zhang¹, HaiJun Ji¹, Hui Yang¹, Jie Yu¹, Jiaqi Wang¹, Liqun Zhang¹, Xinxin Zhou¹, Runguo Wang¹

Affiliation

¹ Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, State Key Laboratory of Organic-Inorganic Composites & Beijing Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Beijing University of Chemical Technology Beijing 100029 P. R. China wangrg@mail.buct.edu.cn zhouxinxin2011@126.com.

Abstract

Reverse atom transfer radical polymerization (RATRP) was used to synthesize poly(dimethyl itaconate) (PDMI) using an AIBME/CuBr₂/dNbpy system. The number average molecular weight (M _n) of PDMI was as high as M _n = 15 000 g mol^-1, the monomer conversion rate reached up to 70%, and the dispersity remained low (Đ = 1.06-1.38). The first-order kinetics of PDMI are discussed in detail. The AIBME initiator had a higher initiation efficiency than the AIBN initiator. As the ratio of initiator (AIBME) to catalyst (CuBr₂) decreased, the M _n and Đ of PDMI decreased. At 60 °C and 80 °C, the M _n of PDMI was much higher than the theoretical number average (M _n,th), and the Đ of PDMI broadened with the conversion rate. At 100 °C, the Đ of PDMI remained low, and the M _n of PDMI was closer to the M _n,th. As the ratio of monomer (DMI) to initiator (AIBME) increased, the M _n of PDMI changed little over time. These phenomena could be explained by the influence of the initiator and catalyst on polymerization kinetics.