The importance of the nature of initiator and solvent in atom transfer radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate catalyzed by copper(I) N-alkyl-2-pyridylmethanimine complexes

Abstract

The effect of the nature of initiator and solvent in atom transfer radical polymerization of methyl methacrylate (MMA) using N-pentyl-2-pyridylmethanimine as the ligand in the presence of Cu(I)Br has been investigated. Under identical concentration and tempera ture conditions, p-toluenesulfonyl chloride (p-TsCl) in diphenyl ether gives polymerization rates identical to ethyl 2-bromoisobutyrate in xylene. However, the former system induces better control of molecular weights and lower polydispersities. © Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH, 2000.