The
cationic polymerization of p-methoxystyrene
(pMOS) was briefly investigated using TeOTe-TfO having the dicationic ditelluroxane structure as a chalcogen bonding
(ChB) organocatalyst. With the HCl adduct of pMOS
(pMOS·HCl) as an initiator, under appropriate
conditions, the polymer molecular weight could be roughly controlled
by the monomer feed ratio. We have subsequently performed the polymerization
using the mononuclear telluronium cation TeMe-TfO as
an organocatalyst and various alcohols as an initiator. For example,
by using the H2O adduct of pMOS (pMOS·H2O) and under the condition of [pMOS·H2O]/[TeMe-TfO]/[pMOS] = 10:5:500 in mM concentration at 0 °C, poly(pMOS) with M
n = 6930 and M
w/M
n = 1.47 was
obtained. Polymerizations with varying monomer feed ratios, monomer
re-addition experiments, the careful analysis of the polymer chain
ends by the 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra,
and polymerizations in the presence of water revealed that the cationic
polymerization of pMOS proceeds in the living mechanism
through the reversible activation of a carbon–hydroxy bond
by the ChB interaction. By using the 125Te NMR spectra,
it was confirmed that TeMe-TfO can be recovered without
decomposition.
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