Polymeric amphiphilic nanoparticles via intramolecular chain collapse using 1-functionalized vinylbenzocyclobutenes

Synthetic routes to 1-functionalized 4-vinylbenzocyclobutenes were developed with cyano, ester, amide and acetoxy 1-functional groups. The synthesis of a high molecular weight diblock quaterpolymer (i.e. two block, with two monomers in each block), where the blocks were highly immiscible (hydrocarbon / aliphatic fluorocarbon) and each contained a thermal crosslinker with a distinct curing temperature range, i.e. a "low" temperature crosslinker and a "high" temperature crosslinker by sequential polymerization using controlled radical polymerization was investigated. The synthesis of the desired diblock quaterpolymer was difficult or impossible due to radical chain transfer to 1-ethoxybenzocylcobutene. Fast chain-transfer to 1-ethoxybenzocyclobutene caused the polymerization to be inefficient and poorly controlled. Using a combination of ATRP and post-polymerization functionalization via the nucleophilic aromatic substitution of poly(pentafluorostyrene), a modular route to a strongly phase segregating benzocyclobutene functional diblock quaterpolymer was established. A linear diblock quaterpolymer was collapsed in two steps under pseudo-high dilution conditions into an amphiphilic single chain nanoparticle. Characterization of the soft organic particles by GPC, 1H- and 19F-NMR spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy confirmed that they were single-chain particles. As part of a plan to possibly prepare the desired strongly phase segregating diblock copolymers by polymer-polymer conjugation using copper catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition, the ATRP of styrene initiated from the popular alkyne functional initiator, prop-2-yn-1-yl 2-brom-2-methylpropanoate (PBiB), was systematically investigated. Using polymerization studies of PBiB a non-degenerative chain coupling side reaction was shown to be occurring. By repeating this study with similar protected alkyne functional ATRP initiators the side reaction was shown to be occurring due to the presence of a terminal alkyne. 1H-NMR studies supported these findings, specifically showing that unprotected terminal alkynes can undergo oxidative alkyne-alkyne coupling under ATRP conditions.