Polyaminoboranes, [RNH–BH2]
n
, are boron–nitrogen
analogues of polyolefins: however, to date, few soluble, well-characterized
examples have been described. Herein, we show that metal-catalyzed
dehydrocoupling of N-alkylamine–boranes Ph(CH2)
x
NH2·BH3 (x = 2–4) with pendant aryl groups yields
soluble polyaminoboranes [Ph(CH2)
x
NH–BH2]
n
, using
skeletal nickel, [Rh(μ-Cl)(1,5-COD)]2 (COD = cyclooctadiene),
and [IrH2(POCOP)] (POCOP = κ3-1,3-(OPtBu2)2C6H3)
as precatalysts in THF. Application of the most efficient catalytic
system (1 mol %, [IrH2(POCOP)], THF, −40 °C)
enabled the isolation of high molar mass, soluble polyaminoborane
[Ph(CH2)4NH–BH2]
n
in moderate (ca. 40%) yield. Structural characterization
was achieved by multinuclear nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared,
and elemental analysis; and the molar mass was determined to be high
(M
n > 10 000 g mol–1) by gel permeation chromatography, dynamic light scattering, and,
for comparison, also 1H diffusion-ordered spectroscopy
methods. The optimized dehydropolymerization conditions for the Ir
catalyst were also used to prepare copolymers from mixtures of Ph(CH2)4NH2·BH3 with either
MeNH2·BH3, Ph(CH2)2NH2·BH3, or NH3·BH3. Significantly, soluble copolymers containing ca. 67% of
[NH2–BH2] repeat units were prepared.
The thermal stability of the polyaminoborane homopolymers and copolymers
was studied by thermogravimetric analysis. The use of a cross-linker,
H3B·NH2(CH2)8NH2·BH3, in the dehydropolymerization reactions
led to improved ceramic yields after pyrolysis indicating that, with
appropriate structural design, polyaminoboranes may be of potential
future interest as precursors of boron-based ceramics.