Chemoselective Lewis pair polymerization of renewable multivinyl-functionalized γ-butyrolactones.

ABSTRACT: Multivinyl-functionalized γ-butyrolactones, γ-vinyl-γ-methyl-α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone (_γVMMBL) and γ-allyl-γ-methyl-α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone (_γAMMBL), have been synthesized from biorenewable ethyl levulinate and effectively polymerized by Lewis pairs consisting of an organic N-heterocyclic carbene Lewis base and a strong organo-Lewis acid E(C₆F₅)₃ (E = Al, B). This Lewis pair polymerization is quantitatively chemoselective, proceeds exclusively via polyaddition across the conjugated α-methylene double bond without participation of the γ-vinyl or γ-allyl double bond, and produces high-molecular-weight functionalized polymers with unimodal molecular-weight distributions. The Al-based Lewis pair produces a polymer with approx

SUBMITTER: Gowda RR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5540837 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature