A Review of Thermally Controlled Covalent Bond Formation in Polymer Chemistry

Abstract

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to review known art in the area of thermally controlled covalent linkage formation for use in thermally reversible polymer systems. Only 1 :1 adduct forming reactions are considered in this paper; e.g., condensation reactions are not discussed because these reactions are controlled via the addition or elimination of small molecules. In the case of an exothermic process, covalent bonds would form at lower temperatures and disassemble at higher temperatures. Linkage formation could ideally be extended to either linear polymerizations or crosslinking schemes, as outlined in Fig. 1.