Synthesis and characterization of a novel well-defined comb-like ionomer

Abstract

A novel well-defined comb-like ionomer with cations was synthesized by the combination of living anionic polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The synthetic approach involves the coupling reaction of polystyrene (PS) backbone bearing 1,1-diphenylethene (DPE) pendant groups with living polystyryllithium (PSLi), subsequent amine functionalization of the resulting 1,1-diphenylmethyl anions with 3-dimethylaminopropyl chloride (DMAPC), and quaternization of tertiary amino groups with hydrochloric acid. The comb-like ionomer was characterized by 1H NMR, IR, GPC measurements and end-group titrition.