Hydroxy-functionalized isotactic poly(1-butene) was synthesized using transition metal-catalyzed regioselective CÀ ÀH borylation at the side chain of the commercial polyolefin and subsequent oxidation of the boronic ester functionality. Functionalization up to $ 19 mol % of the termini of the ethyl side chain occurred without significant side reactions that could alter the polymer chain length. Esterification of the hydroxy group in the polymer with 2-bromoisobutyl bromide generated a side chain-functionalized polyolefin macroinitiator. Atom transfer radical polymerization of tert-butyl acrylate from the macroinitiator produced a high molecularweight graft copolymer of the polyolefin, isotactic poly(1-butene)-graft-poly(tert-butyl acrylate) (PB-g-PtBA). Finally, the hydrolysis of the tert-butoxy ester group of PB-g-PtBA created an amphiphilic polyolefin, isotactic poly(1-butene)-graft-poly(acrylic acid), which contained a short carboxylic acid-functionalized polymer block at the side chain. V V C 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: [3533][3534][3535][3536][3537][3538][3539][3540][3541][3542][3543][3544][3545] 2008

A series of wholly aromatic sulfonated poly(ether amide)s (SPEAs) containing a sulfonic acid group on the dicarbonyl aromatic ring were prepared via a polycondensation reaction of sulfonated terephthalic acid (STA), terephthalic acid (TA), and aromatic diamine monomers. The degree of sulfonation was readily controlled by adjusting the monomer feed ratio of STA and TA in the polymerization process, and randomly sulfonated polymers with an ion exchange capacity (IEC) of 1.0–1.8 mequiv/g were prepared using this protocol. The chemical structures of randomly sulfonated polymers were characterized using NMR and FT‐IR spectroscopies. Gel permeation chromatography analysis of SPEAs indicated the formation of high‐molecular‐weight sulfonated polymer. Tough and flexible SPEA membranes were obtained from solution of N,N‐dimethylacetamide, and thermogravimetric analysis of these membranes showed a high degree of thermal stability. Compared with previously reported sulfonated aromatic polyamides, these new SPEAs showed a significantly lower water uptake of 10–30%. In proton conductivity measurements, ODA‐SPEA‐70 (IEC = 1.80 mequiv/g), which was obtained from polycondensation of 4,4′‐oxydianiline and 70 mol % STA, showed a comparable proton conductivity (105 mS/cm) to that of Nafion 117 at 80 °C. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 485–496, 2009