The synthesis and properties of triethyleneoxy-methylether and crown-ether functionalized metathesis polymers

The synthesis and characterization of metathesis polymers functionalized with triethyleneoxy-methylether and crown-ether side groups is reported. The triethyleneoxy-methylether substituted norbornene and acetylene derivatives and the 14-crown-4 functionalized norbornene were synthesized and metathesis polymerization with carbene complexes of molybdenum or ruthenium provided the substituted polynorbomene or polyacetylene backbone. The polymers were characterized with NMR, GPC, FT-IR and DSC. Addition of lithium ions to these amorphous polymers results in increasing of the glass transition temperature, T-g, because the oxygen-metal coordination leads to an enhanced order. The triethyleneoxy-methylether-bearing polymers show a low T-g even at high O:Li ratios. This is in contrast to the crown-ether-modified polynorbornene where the crown-ether ring stiffens the main chain and leads to higher T-g. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.