Application
A Practical Living Radical Polymerization with Sodium Iodide as a Catalyst
Typical Procedure (a bulk polymerization):
A mixture of methyl methacrylate (801 g, 8 mol), 2-iodo-2-methylpropionitrile (15.6 g, 80 mmol), sodium iodide (6 g, 40 mmol), and 18-crown-6-ether (10.6 g, 40 mmol) is heated in a flask at 70 °C for 4 h under an argon atmosphere with stirring. An aliquot (0.1 mL) of the solution is taken out by a syringe, cooled to room temperature, diluted by THF or DMF to a known concentration, and analyzed by gel permeation chromatography (GPC), yielding the polymer with Mn = 8200 and Mw/Mn = 1.16 (monomer conversion = 83%).
References
Application
Alkyl Iodide Initiators for Organocatalyzed Living Radical Polymerization
General Scheme of Organocatalyzed Living Radical Polymerization1-5)
Goto et al. have reported that alkyl iodides are efficient initiators for organocatalyzed living radical polymerization which is a new family of living radical polymerization. Organic amines, organic salts and sodium iodide are used as catalysts. 1-5) Low polydispersity and metal free polymers can be obtained by using this method.
Ranges of Effective Alkyl Iodides in the Polymerizations of Methyl Methacrylate (MMA) and Butyl Acrylate (BA)1)
These alkyl iodides are effective initiators in methyl methacrylate (MMA) [
M0087] and butyl acrylate (BA) [
A0142] polymerizations using tributylmethylphosphonium iodide (BMPI) [
M1455] or tetrabutylammonium iodide (BNI) [
T0057] as a catalyst. Low-polydispersity polymers are obtainable.
1) References
- 1) a) Systematic Study on Alkyl Iodide Initiators in Living Radical Polymerization with Organic Catalysts
- L. Lei, M. Tanishima, A. Goto, H. Kaji, Y. Yamaguchi, H. Komatsu, T. Jitsukawa, M. Miyamoto, Macromolecules 2014, 47, 6610.

- b) A. Goto, T. Fukuda, Y. Tsujii, US 7399814, 2008.
- c) A. Goto, PCT Int. Appl. WO 2015122404, 2015.
- 2) Reversible Generation of a Carbon-Centered Radical from Alkyl Iodide Using Organic Salts and Their Application as Organic Catalysts in Living Radical Polymerization
- 3) Photocontrolled Organocatalyzed Living Radical Polymerization Feasible over a Wide Range of Wavelengths
- 4) Living Radical Polymerization with Alkali and Alkaline Earth Metal Iodides as Catalysts
- 5) The other related patents
- JP Patent No. 5850599, 5697026, 5881292, 5645165 and 5610402. JP Patent Appl. No. 2013-529906.
PubMed Literature