Biobased Amphiphilic Block Copolymers by RAFT-Mediated PISA in Green Solvent.

Fanny Coumes, Mauricio Balarezo, Jutta Rieger, François Stoffelbach

Macromolecular rapid communications 2020 May

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Biobased amphiphilic diblock copolymers are prepared thanks to the combination of reversible addition-fragmentation transfer (RAFT) polymerization and polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) in an eco-friendly solvent mixture. First, the formation of a poly(acrylic acid) macroRAFT agent (PAA-TTC) is performed in water at 70 °C. Then, in a series of experiments, the PAA-TTC macroRAFT agent is used directly, without purification, as both chain transfer agent and stabilizing agent in the RAFT-PISA of menthyl acrylate (MnA) in dispersion in an ethanol/water mixture. The polymerizations of MnA are fast with high final conversions and well-controlled amphiphilic diblock copolymers are synthesized. Stable, sub-micrometric spherical particles composed of the diblock copolymers are formed. The influence of the monomer concentration and the length of the solvophobic block on the diameter of the self-assemblies is studied by means of dynamic light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron-microscopy. © 2020 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Citation

Fanny Coumes, Mauricio Balarezo, Jutta Rieger, François Stoffelbach. Biobased Amphiphilic Block Copolymers by RAFT-Mediated PISA in Green Solvent. Macromolecular rapid communications. 2020 May;41(9):e2000002