Synthesis of Well-Defined Polystyrene-Block-Polyglycidol (PS-b-PG) Block Co-polymers by Anionic Polymerization

Well-defined polystyrene-block-polyglycidol (PS-b-PG) block co-polymers of various composition were prepared in two steps: (i) sequential anionic polymerization of styrene in benzene initiated with sec. butyl lithium followed by the polymerization of ethoxy ethyl glycidyl ether in the presence of the phosphazene base P-4-t-Bu and (ii) deprotection of the corresponding polystyrene-block-poly(ethoxy ethyl glycidyl ether) block co-polymers with concentrated HCl or an acidic ion-exchange resin, respectively. The polymers were characterized by size-exclusion chromatography, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry, proving that narrow distributed block co-polymers of predetermined composition were obtained, which, based on their amphiphilic character, self-organize into hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains. (C) Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2010