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Article

Synthesis of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polymers Containing Reactive Functionality with Low PDIs by Polymerizations of Long-Chain α-Olefins in the Presence of Their Nonconjugated Dienes by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–Borate Catalyst

Department of Chemistry, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 1-1 Minami Osawa, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Polymers 2020, 12(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym12010003
Submission received: 14 November 2019 / Revised: 9 December 2019 / Accepted: 16 December 2019 / Published: 18 December 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Catalytic Polymerization)

Abstract

:
Copolymerizations of 1-decene (DC) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD), 1-dodecene (DD) with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), and 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst in the presence of AliBu3/Al(n-C8H17)3 proceeded in a quasi-living manner in n-hexane at −30 to −50 °C, affording ultrahigh molecular weight (UHMW) copolymers containing terminal olefinic double bonds in the side chain with rather low PDI (Mw/Mn) values. In the DC/DCD copolymerization, the resultant copolymer prepared at −40 °C possessed UHMW (Mn = 1.40 × 106 after 45 min) with low PDI (Mw/Mn = 1.39); both the activity and the PDI value decreased at low polymerization temperature (Mn = 5.38 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.18, after 120 min at −50 °C). UHMW poly(TD-co-TDD) was also obtained in the copolymerization at −30 °C (Mn = 9.12 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.51, after 120 min), using this catalyst.

Graphical Abstract

1. Introduction

Transition metal catalyzed olefin polymerization is the core technology in the polyolefin industry, and the recent progress in the catalyst development provides new possibilities for the synthesis of new polymers [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14]. Homopolymers of long-chain (higher) α-olefins are branched macromolecules with a high graft density, and the polymers are thus recognized as the simplest bottlebrush polymers, with their backbone and side chains consisting of alkanes [15,16]. Amorphous poly(α-olefin)s are used in hot-melt applications due to their high melt–flow rate with low density, and the ultrahigh molecular weight (UHMW) polymers possess highly entangled bottlebrush architectures and are used as drag-reducing agents (DRAs) in pipeline transport methods for crude oil and petroleum products for improvement of piping system capacity [17,18,19,20]. Recent reports revealed their melt structure, linear rheology, and interchain friction mechanism, including effect of side-chain length toward their linear viscoelastic response and melt microstructure [15,16].
However, reports for synthesis of UHMW polymers by polymerization of higher α-olefins (1-decene, 1-dodecene, 1-tetradecene, etc.) still have been limited [15,16,21,22], probably due to their preferred β-hydrogen elimination compared to the repeated insertion of monomer with a steric bulk (of alkane branching), as seen in ordinary metallocene catalysts yielding oligomers [21,23,24]. There are several examples for synthesis of (ultra)high molecular weight poly(1-hexene)s [21,25,26,27] by using [2,2-(O-4-Me-6-tBu-C6H3)2S]TiCl2 (with water modified MMAO cocatalyst) [27,28], (C5HMe4)2HfCl2 (under ultrahigh pressure) [25], titanium complexes with diamine bis(phenolate) ligands [26]. Synthesis of rather high molecular weights poly(α-olefin)s, mostly poly(1-hexene)s, using the other catalysts, have also been known [24,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37].
We reported that Cp*TiCl2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–MAO catalyst afforded high molecular weight poly(α-olefin)s by polymerizations of 1-decene (DC), 1-dodecene (DD), 1-hexadecene, and 1-octadecene [21]. It was then revealed that polymerizations of DC, DD, and 1-tetradecene (TD) proceeded in a quasi-living manner in the presence of Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst and Al cocatalysts at −30 to −50 °C, affording UHMW polymers (e.g., poly(DC): Mn = 7.04 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.37; poly(TD): Mn = 1.02 × 106, Mw/Mn = 1.38); the polymerizations proceeded with rather high catalytic activities (activity at −30 °C: 4120–5860 kg-poly(DC)/mol-Ti·h) [22]. The PDI (Mw/Mn) values decreased (accompanied with decrease in the catalytic activity) with an increase in the Al(n-C8H17)3/AliBu3 molar ratio and/or by decreasing the polymerization temperature (−40 and −50 °C). Moreover, it was demonstrated that 1,7-octadiene (OD) polymerization by Cp*TiCl2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–MAO catalyst afforded polymers containing terminal olefinic double bonds in the side chain without cyclization, cross-linking (Scheme 1). An introduction of polar functionality and the subsequent grafting (by living ring opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone) was also demonstrated into poly(1-octene-co-OD)s under mild conditions [38]. The method introduced a possibility for synthesis of functionalized polyolefins by incorporation of reactive functionalities, as demonstrated in the ethylene/1-octene or ethylene/styrene copolymerization in the presence of OD (synthesis of copolymers containing terminal olefinic double bonds with uniform compositions), and subsequent chemical modification under mild conditions (Scheme 1) [39,40,41,42,43,44,45].
Since, as described above, UHMW polymers are simple bottlebrush polymers prepared by polymerization of these higher α-olefins via the grafting-through approach, we thus have an interest in synthesis of the UHMW polymers containing terminal olefinic double bond by copolymerization of DC with 1,9-decadiene (DCD), DD with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), and TD with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using 1–borate catalyst [46]. We thus, herein, wish to introduce our explored results for synthesis of new bottlebrush polymers with low PDIs containing reactive functionality in the side chain by 1–borate catalyst in the presence of Al cocatalyst (Scheme 2).

2. Materials and Methods

All experiments were conducted in a dry box, under a nitrogen atmosphere, unless otherwise specified. All chemicals of reagent grade were purified by the standard purification protocols. The n-Hexane or toluene (anhydrous grade, Kanto Kagaku Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) was stored in a bottle containing molecular sieves (mixture of 3A and 4A 1/16, and 13X) in the dry box, and was used without further purification. The 1-Decene, 1-dodecene, 1-tetradecene, 1,9-decadiene, 1.11-dodecadiene, and 1,13-tetradecadiene (reagent grades, TCI Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) were stored in bottles, in the dry box, and were passed through an alumina short column prior to use. Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1) was prepared according to our previous report [46], and [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (Asahi Glass Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) was used as received.
All 1H and 13C NMR spectra were recorded on a Bruker AV 500 spectrometer (500.13 MHz for 1H; 125.77 MHz for 13C, Bruker Japan K.K., Tokyo, Japan) at 25 °C, and all chemical shifts in the spectra were recorded in ppm (reference SiMe4). Samples for the measurement were prepared by dissolving the polymers in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 solution. Gel-permeation chromatography (GPC) were conducted for analysis of molecular weights (based on the calibration with standard polystyrene samples as the standard procedure) and the distributions. HPLC grade THF (degassed prior to use) was used for GPC analysis, and the GPC analysis was performed at 40 °C on a Shimadzu SCL-10A, using a RID-10A detector (Shimadzu Co., Ltd.), using degassed prior to use in THF (containing 0.03 wt.% of 2,6-di-tert-butyl-p-cresol, flow rate 1.0 mL/min). GPC columns (ShimPAC GPC-806, 804, and 802, 30 cm × 8.0 mm diameter, spherical porous gel made of styrene/divinylbenzene copolymer, ranging from <102 to 2 × 107 MW).
Typical polymerization procedures were as follows: in the dry box, 1-decene (30.0 mL), 1,9-decadiene (0.5 mL), n-hexane (30.0 mL), and AliBu3 and Al(n-C8H17)3 (prescribed amount) were added into a 100 mL round-bottom flask, which was connected to three-way valves. The flask was taken out from the dry box, and a toluene solution containing 1 (2.0 µmol/mL), which was pretreated with 2.0 eq. of AliBu3 at −30 °C, was then added into the mixture precooled at −30 °C under N2 atmosphere. The polymerization was started by the addition of a prescribed amount of toluene solution containing [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (2.0 µmol/mL). A certain amount (3.0 mL) of the reaction solution was taken out via a syringe from the reaction mixture, to monitor the time course; the sample solution was then quickly poured into iPrOH (150 mL) containing HCl (10 mL). The resultant polymer as precipitates was collected, adequately washed with iPrOH, and then dried in vacuo, for further analysis.

3. Results and Discussion

On the basis of our previous reports for polymerizations of 1-decene (DC), 1-dodecene (DD), and 1-tetradecene (TD) [22], and of 1,7-octadiene [38], Cp*TiMe2(OAr) (1, Ar = 2,6-iPr2C6H3) was chosen as the catalyst precursor, and [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) was chosen as the cocatalyst in the presence of AliBu3 and Al(n-C8H17)3 [22,29]. Copolymerizations of DC with 1,9-decadiene (DCD) were conducted in n-hexane at −30 to −50 °C, in the presence of Al cocatalyst [Al(n-C8H17)3/AliBu3/Ti = 400/100/1.0 (at −30 and −40 °C) or 300/200/1.0 (at −50 °C), molar ratio]; the ratios were used on the basis of the homo polymerization results [22]. As reported previously [22,29,47,48,49], use of Al(n-C8H17)3, weak reagent for alkylation, and/or chain transfer was effective to proceed without catalyst deactivation, probably not only due to a role as a scavenger, but also due to the fact that the Al alkyl would contribute to the stabilization of the catalytically active species by preventing the decomposition from further reaction with borate [50,51,52]. The results in the DC/DCD copolymerization are summarized in Table 1.
As observed in the polymerization of DC, the copolymerization of DC with DCD proceeded with high catalytic activities (2750–7820 kg-polymer/mol-Ti·h within 20 min), even at −30 °C, affording high molecular weight polymers with rather narrow molecular weight distributions (run 1, Mn = 3.24 × 105–7.53 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.43–1.47). The Mn value increased over the time course, without significant changes in the PDI values. It turned out that the PDI values decreased at a low temperature, with a decrease in the catalytic activity; the resultant copolymer prepared at −40 °C possessed UHMW (run 2, Mn = 1.40 × 106 after 45 min), with low PDI (Mw/Mn = 1.39), and the PDI value became low when the copolymerization was conducted at −50 °C (run 3, Mn = 5.38 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.18, after 120 min at −50 °C). As shown in Figure 1a, linear relationships between the Mn values and the polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) were observed, suggesting that these polymerizations proceeded in a quasi-living manner, as reported in the polymerization of DC [22]. As shown in Figure 2b (shown below), the resultant copolymers contain terminal olefinic double bonds by incorporation of DCD. The content of DCD estimated by 1H NMR spectra slightly decreased gradually due to rather high consumption of DCD (rather high conversion of DCD and changes in the DCD concentration in the reaction solution) during the polymerization time course. This would suggest the possibility of (rather) gradient composition, although we do not have the firm elucidation at this moment.
Table 2 summarizes results in the DD/DDD copolymerization conducted at −40 and −50 °C. As observed in the DC/DCD copolymerization, the Mn value increased over the time course, without significant changes in the PDI values, and the PDI became low at −50 °C (run 5). The resultant copolymer prepared at −50 °C possessed high molecular weight with low PDI value (run 5, Mn = 5.46 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.28 after 120 min). As shown in Figure 1b, a linear relationship between the Mn values and the polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) was observed in the polymerization at −50 °C, suggesting a possibility of a quasi-living manner, as observed in the DC/DCD copolymerization.
Table 3 summarizes results in TD/TDD copolymerization conducted at −30 °C. Due to a difficulty of polymerization at low temperature (the n-hexane solution would be heterogeneous due to the freezing of TD), the polymerization could be conducted only at −30 °C, under rather diluted conditions. As observed in Table 1 and Table 2, the Mn value increased over the time course, without significant changes in the PDI values. The resultant copolymer possessed high molecular weight, with unimodal molecular weight distribution (run 6, Mn = 9.12 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.51 after 120 min). As also shown in Figure 2a, a linear relationship between the Mn values and the polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) was clearly observed. The results thus also suggest that the TD/TDD copolymerization proceeded in a quasi-living manner.
As shown in Figure 2b, the resultant polymers possessed a terminal olefinic double bond, as observed in poly(1-octene-co-1,7-octadiene) and poly(ethylene-co-1-octene-co-1,7-octadiene) [38], as well as in poly(ethylene-co-styrene-co-1,7-octadiene) [44] prepared by Cp*TiCl2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–MAO catalyst, and no resonances ascribed to protons in the internal olefins were observed (additional 1H NMR spectra are shown in the Supplementary Materials) [53]. The resultant polymers are highly soluble in toluene, THF, chloroform, dichloromethane, etc., without any difficulties (as seen in poly(1,5 hexadiene) containing partial cross-linking prepared by Cp2ZrCl2-MAO catalysts even under diluted conditions [54]). The results thus suggest that the resultant polymers were poly(DC-co-DCD)s and poly(TD-co-TDD)s containing terminal olefins in the side chain, as expected on the basis of our previous results [22,38].

4. Conclusions

We have shown that synthesis of ultrahigh molecular weight (UHMW) highly branched (bottlebrush) polymers that contain terminal olefinic double bonds in the side chain with rather low PDI (Mw/Mn) values has been attained by polymerization of long-chain (higher) α-olefins (1-decene (DC), 1-dodecene (DD), and 1-tetradecene (TD)) in the presence of corresponding nonconjugated dienes (1,9-decadiene (DCD), 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), and 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), respectively), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) as the catalyst, in the presence of AliBu3/Al(n-C8H17)3. These polymerizations proceeded in a quasi-living manner in n-hexane at −30 to −50 °C, and linear relationships between the Mn values and the polymer yields were observed in all cases, without significant changes in the PDI (Mw/Mn) values. The resultant poly(DC-co-DCD) prepared at −40 °C possessed UHMW (Mn = 1.40 × 106 after 45 min) with low PDI (Mw/Mn = 1.39), and UHMW poly(TD-co-TDD) was also obtained in the TD/TDD copolymerization at −30 °C (Mn = 9.12 × 105, Mw/Mn = 1.51, after 120 min). As described in the introduction, these polymers should possess highly branched bottlebrush architectures, and the present results strongly suggest a possibility of introduction of reactive functionality (terminal olefins) into the side chain (outside of the cylindrical structure). Moreover, as described in the introductory, as well as reported previously [38], an introduction of hydroxy group by treatment of the terminal olefinic double bonds with BBN and the subsequent grafting (by living ring opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone) would be possible. One issue we have not yet clarified clearly is the effect of diene monomers on the monomer reactivity ratio. We thus believe that the results could demonstrate providing new materials (functionalized polyolefin bottlebrush) based on polyolefins, and more details including further analysis and applications will be introduced in the future.

Supplementary Materials

The following are available online at https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/12/1/3/s1. Figure S1: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-decene-co-1,9-decadiene) (run 1, after 5 min, 1,9-decadiene 8.9 mol%), Figure S2: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-decene-co-1,9-decadiene) (run 2, after 10 min, 1,9-decadiene 9.1 mol%), Figure S3: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-dodecene-co-1,11-dodecadiene) (run 4, after 30 min, 1,11-dodecadiene 7.7 mol%), Figure S4: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-dodecene-co-1,11-dodecadiene) (run 5, after 120 min, 1,11-dodecadiene 7.5 mol%), Figure S5: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-tetradecene-co-1,13-tetradecadiene) (run 6, after 30 min, 1,13-tetradecadiene 4.5 mol%), Figure S6: 1H NMR spectrum (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for poly(1-tetradecene-co-1,13-tetradecadiene) (run 6, after 60 min, 1,13-tetradecadiene 3.7 mol%).

Author Contributions

Data collection and writing reports, S.P.; project support, teaching, and supervision, W.A.; project administration, funding acquisition, conceptualization, supervision, and original draft preparation, K.N. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This project was partly supported by Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS, No. 18H01982).

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank A. Inagaki, Ken Tsutsumi, and S. Komiya (Tokyo Metropolitan University) for fruitful discussions.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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  53. As reported previously [21,22,29], the resultant polymers do not have stereo-regularity (atactic polymers), as observed in the spectra in poly(1-hexene) [29], poly(1-decene) and poly(1-dodecene) [22] using 1–borate catalyst. Resonances ascribed to 2,1- or other insertion units could not be found, strongly suggesting that the polymerizations proceeded with (in high certainty) 1,2-insertion manner.
  54. Nomura, K.; Hatanaka, Y.; Okumura, H.; Fujiki, M.; Hasegawa, K. Polymerization of 1,5-hexadiene by nonbridged half-titanocene complex—MAO catalyst system: Remarkable difference in the selectivity of repeated 1,2-insertion. Macromolecules 2004, 37, 1693–1695. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
Scheme 1. Polymerization of 1,7-octadiene (OD) and ethylene copolymerizations in the presence of OD, using Cp’TiCl2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (Cp’ = Cp*, 1,2,4-Me3C5H2)–MAO catalysts [38,44].
Scheme 1. Polymerization of 1,7-octadiene (OD) and ethylene copolymerizations in the presence of OD, using Cp’TiCl2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (Cp’ = Cp*, 1,2,4-Me3C5H2)–MAO catalysts [38,44].
Polymers 12 00003 sch001
Scheme 2. Copolymerization of 1-decene (DC), 1-dodecene (DD), 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD), 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), and with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] catalyst in the presence of Al cocatalyst.
Scheme 2. Copolymerization of 1-decene (DC), 1-dodecene (DD), 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD), 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), and with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] catalyst in the presence of Al cocatalyst.
Polymers 12 00003 sch002
Figure 1. Plots of Mn, Mw/Mn vs polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) in copolymerization of (a) 1-decene (DC) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD) and (b) 1-dodecene (DD) with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst. (b) The results in DC/DCD copolymerization at −50 °C were plotted for comparison. Detailed data are shown in Table 1 and Table 2.
Figure 1. Plots of Mn, Mw/Mn vs polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) in copolymerization of (a) 1-decene (DC) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD) and (b) 1-dodecene (DD) with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst. (b) The results in DC/DCD copolymerization at −50 °C were plotted for comparison. Detailed data are shown in Table 1 and Table 2.
Polymers 12 00003 g001
Figure 2. (a) Plots of Mn, Mw/Mn vs. polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) in copolymerization of 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–borate catalyst. (b) Selected 1H NMR spectra (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for (top) poly(DC-co-DCD) (after five min) and (bottom) poly(TD-co-TDD) (after 60 min). The resonance at 5.8 ppm would be overlapped with the satellite of the resonance at 6.0 ppm.
Figure 2. (a) Plots of Mn, Mw/Mn vs. polymer yields (turnover numbers, TON) in copolymerization of 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD), using Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–borate catalyst. (b) Selected 1H NMR spectra (in 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane-d2 at 25 °C) for (top) poly(DC-co-DCD) (after five min) and (bottom) poly(TD-co-TDD) (after 60 min). The resonance at 5.8 ppm would be overlapped with the satellite of the resonance at 6.0 ppm.
Polymers 12 00003 g002
Table 1. Copolymerization of 1-decene (DC) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst a.
Table 1. Copolymerization of 1-decene (DC) with 1,9-decadiene (DCD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst a.
RunAl(n-C8H17)3/
AliBu3/Ti b
Temp.
/°C
Time
/min
Yield c
/mg
Activity dTON eMnf
× 10−4
Mw/
Mnf
DCD g
/mol%
Conv. h
/%
1400/100/1.0−3056527820465032.41.438.916
107964780568045.31.478.417
158643460616052.41.458.219
209182750655075.31.438.019
2400/100/1.0−40102461480176055.11.289.16
205821750415088.71.328.813
3096619306900100.71.407.819
45140018709990140.11.395.620
3300/200/1.0−5060396400283032.41.199.810
75512410366038.91.209.212
90574380410046.81.148.313
120742370530053.81.187.415
a Conditions: 1 1.0 µmol, 1-decene 30.0 mL, 1,9-decadiene 0.5 mL, n-hexane 30.0 mL, AliBu3/Al(n-C8H17)3/ [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4]/Ti = 100/400/3.0/1.0 molar ratio (200/300/1.0 at −50 °C), 1 was pretreated with 2.0 equiv of AliBu3 at −30 °C for 10 min before addition into the mixture. b Molar ratio. c A prescribed amount (3.0 mL) of the solution was removed via syringe from the reaction mixture, and the yields were based on obtained amount. d Activity in kg-polymer/mol-Ti·h. e TON (turnovers) = monomer consumed (mol)/mol-Ti. f GPC data in THF vs polystyrene standards. g Estimated by 1H NMR spectra. h Estimated ((DCD consumed/DCD charged) × 100) (conv. = conversion).
Table 2. Copolymerization of 1-dodecene (DD) with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst a.
Table 2. Copolymerization of 1-dodecene (DD) with 1,11-dodecadiene (DDD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst a.
RunAl(n-C8H17)3/
AliBu3/Ti b
Temp.
/°C
Time
/min
Yield c
/mg
Activity dTON eMnf
× 10−4
Mw/
Mnf
DDD g
/mol%
Conv. h
/%
4400/100/1.0−40208282480590042.61.347.917
308971790639048.31.397.718
409321400664051.41.386.618
5250/250/1.0−5075402320239033.51.25
90492330292042.61.257.710
105582330346049.71.247.511
120628310373054.61.287.512
a Conditions: 1 1.0 µmol, 1-dodecene 25.0 mL, 1,11-dodecadiene 0.5 mL, n-hexane 35.0 mL, AliBu3/Al(n-C8H17)3/ [Ph3C][B(C6F5)4]/Ti = 100/400/3.0/1.0 molar ratio (250/250/1.0 at −50 °C), 1 was pretreated with 2.0 equiv of AliBu3 at −30 °C for 10 min before addition into the mixture. b Molar ratio. c A prescribed amount (3.0 mL) of the solution was removed via syringe from the reaction mixture, and the yields were based on obtained amount. d Activity in kg-polymer/mol-Ti·h. e TON (turnovers) = monomer consumed (mol)/mol-Ti. f GPC data in THF vs polystyrene standards. g Estimated by 1H NMR spectra. h Estimated ((DDD consumed/DDD charged) × 100).
Table 3. Copolymerization of 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst (−30 °C) a.
Table 3. Copolymerization of 1-tetradecene (TD) with 1,13-tetradecadiene (TDD) by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3) (1)–[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4] (borate) catalyst (−30 °C) a.
RunTime/minYield b/mgActivity cTON dMne × 10−4Mw/MneTDD f/mol%
610184110092748.71.26
305161030260052.81.384.5
408301110418055.31.364.0
6011501150579064.81.413.7
7515101210761072.91.433.5
9018721250944080.41.483.2
120243212201230091.21.51
a Conditions: 1 1.0 µmol, 1-tetradecene 20.0 mL, 1,13-tetradecadiene 1.0 mL, n-hexane 40.0 mL, AliBu3/Al(n-C8H17)3/[Ph3C][B(C6F5)4]/Ti = 100/400/3.0/1.0, molar ratio, 1 was pretreated with 2.0 equiv of AliBu3 at −30 °C for 10 min before addition into the mixture. b A prescribed amount (3.0 mL) of the reaction mixture was removed via syringe from the polymerization mixture, and the yields were based on obtained amount. cActivity in kg-polymer/mol-Ti·h. d TON (turnovers) = monomer consumed (mol)/mol-Ti. e GPC data in THF vs polystyrene standards. f Estimated by 1H NMR spectra.

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Nomura, K.; Pengoubol, S.; Apisuk, W. Synthesis of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polymers Containing Reactive Functionality with Low PDIs by Polymerizations of Long-Chain α-Olefins in the Presence of Their Nonconjugated Dienes by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–Borate Catalyst. Polymers 2020, 12, 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym12010003

AMA Style

Nomura K, Pengoubol S, Apisuk W. Synthesis of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polymers Containing Reactive Functionality with Low PDIs by Polymerizations of Long-Chain α-Olefins in the Presence of Their Nonconjugated Dienes by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–Borate Catalyst. Polymers. 2020; 12(1):3. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym12010003

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Nomura, Kotohiro, Sarntamon Pengoubol, and Wannida Apisuk. 2020. "Synthesis of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polymers Containing Reactive Functionality with Low PDIs by Polymerizations of Long-Chain α-Olefins in the Presence of Their Nonconjugated Dienes by Cp*TiMe2(O-2,6-iPr2C6H3)–Borate Catalyst" Polymers 12, no. 1: 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym12010003

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