Mechanochemical Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization: Development, Scope, and Mechano-Only Copolymer Synthesis

02 November 2021, Version 1
This content is a preprint and has not undergone peer review at the time of posting.

Abstract

Ruthenium-alkylidene initiated ring-opening metathesis polymerization (Ru-ROMP) was realized under solid-state conditions employing a mechanochemical ball milling method, promoting greenness and broadening scope. High-speed ball milling provided sufficient mixing and energy to the reaction mixture comprised of the catalyst and solid monomers, thus eliminating the need for solvents. Studies on the catalytic species and ball milling parameters (liquid-assisted grinding, vibration frequency, and ball size) revealed that mechanical energy regulated solid-state Ru-ROMP and it follows similar mechanistic features of solution-phase reactions. The solubility and miscibility of monomer and Ru-initiator are not a limitation in solid-state ball milling. Without the use of a solvent, a wide spectrum of solid monomers, including ionomer, fluorous monomer, and macromonomers, were successfully polymerized. Finally, effective direct copolymerization of immiscible monomers such ionic/hydrophobic and ionic/fluorous monomers resulted in a set of copolymers that are difficult to make using traditional solution procedures.

Keywords

Polymer mechanochemistry
ROMP
ball milling
immiscible copolymerization

Supplementary materials

Title
Description
Actions
Title
Mechanochemical Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization: Development, Scope, and Mechano-Only Copolymer Synthesis
Description
SI
Actions

Comments

Comments are not moderated before they are posted, but they can be removed by the site moderators if they are found to be in contravention of our Commenting Policy [opens in a new tab] - please read this policy before you post. Comments should be used for scholarly discussion of the content in question. You can find more information about how to use the commenting feature here [opens in a new tab] .
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy [opens in a new tab] and Terms of Service [opens in a new tab] apply.