Po-Sheng Chen, Yi-Chang Liu, Chia‐Her Lin
Aug 15, 2010
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Influential Citations
21
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Journal
Journal of Polymer Science Part A
Abstract
Two novel sulfonate phenol ligands—3,3′-di-tert-butyl-2′-hydroxy-5,5′,6,6′-tetramethyl-biphenyl-2-yl 4-X-benzenesulfonate (XCF3, LCF3-H, and XOCH3, LOMe-H)—were prepared through the sulfonylation of 3,3′-di-tert-butyl-5,5′,6,6′-tetramethylbiphenyl-2,2′-diol with the corresponding 4-substituted benzenesulfonyl chloride (1 equiv.) in the presence of excess triethylamine. Magnesium (Mg) complexes supported by sulfonate phenoxide ligands were synthesized and characterized structurally. The reaction of MgnBu2 with L-H (2 equiv.) produces the four-coordinated monomeric complexes (LCF3)2Mg (1) and (LOMe)2Mg (2). Complexes 1 and 2 are efficient catalysts for the ring-opening polymerization of e-caprolactone (e-CL) and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) in the presence of 9-anthracenemethanol; complex 1 catalyzes the polymerization of e-CL and TMC in a controlled manner, yielding polymers with the expected molecular weights and narrow polydispersity indices (PDIs). In e-CL polymerization, the activity of complex 1 is greater than that of complex 2, likely because of the greater Lewis acidity of Mg2+ metal caused by the electron-withdrawing substitute trifluoromethyl (CF3) at the 4-position of the benzenesulfonate group. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 48: 3564–3572, 2010