Fructose as a reducing agent for in situ generation of Cu(I) species via an electron-transfer reaction in copper-catalyzed living/controlled radical polymerization of styrene

Abstract

Copper-catalyzed living radical polymerization (LRP) of styrene was carried out in the presence of fructose as a reducing agent for Cu(II) by using either 1-chloro-1-phenyl ethane (1-PEC1), ethyl-2-bromoisobutyrate (EiBr) or methyl-2-bromopropionate (MBP) as an initiator and N,N,N',N", N"-pentamethyldiethylenetriamine (PMDETA) as ligand at 110°C. Kinetic experiments were carried out in order to reveal the effect of fructose concentration on copper-catalyzed LRP of St. This technique was successfully applied for the preparation of homo-polymers (linear and star-type polystyrene (PS)) and corresponding block co-polymers (PS-b-PMMA). The polymers thus obtained were characterized using GPC, 1 H-NMR and MALDI-TOF measurements.