Novel process yields dendritic polymers

Abstract

Cornell University chemists have devised a relatively simple method to make inexpensive new polymeric materials from commercially available monomers. The method, called self-condensing vinyl polymerization, offers a versatile approach to making dendritic polymers—polymers with highly branched architectures. Potential uses include adhesives, lubricants, coatings, catalysts, and drug delivery systems. This opens the way for the preparation of totally new globular polymers from simple monomers that are more readily accessible and provide better properties than previous monomers used in polycondensations, says chemistry professor Jean M. J. Frechet, who leads the Cornell team. Frechet notes this is the first synthesis of a hyperbranched dendritic structure by a vinyl polymerization process. The work, funded by the Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation through Cornell's Materials Science Center, was published in last week's Science [ 269 , 1080 (1995)]. The method uses an external stim...