Functionalized vinyl-type polynorbornene: Synthesis and characterization of norbornene-styrene copolymers with excellent thermostability and optical properties

POLY 555

The Ban Hoang, hoangtheban@polymer.titech.ac.jp, Nanostructure polymeric material project, Japan Chemical Innovation Institute, Meguro-ku, O-okayama 2-12-1, H-120, Tokyo, 152-8552, Japan, Yasuo Tsunogae, Zeon Corporation, Kawasaki-ku, Yako 1-2-1, Kawasaki, 210-9507, Japan, Shuichi Nojima, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Meguro-ku, O-okayama 2-12-1, Tokyo, 152-8552, Japan, and Takeshi Shiono, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, 739-8527, Japan.
This article reports a new polymerization technique for the functionalization of the vinyl-type polynorbornene via the copolymerization of norbornene (N) with styrene (S) in polar solvents like dichlorobenzene catalyzed by a substituted ansa-fluorenylamidodimethyltitanium activated with a suitable cocatalyst. The resulting copolymers possess much higher molecular weights and stereoregularity comparable with those of the copolymers obtained from the nickel-based catalysts. Because of the specific molecular structure of the vinyl-type N-S copolymers that composed of positive birefringence and highly rigid norbornene rings in combination with negative birefringence styrene units, the titanium-based N-S copolymers exhibited superior optical properties than that of PMMA or PC, and exceptionally high heat resistance property up to 300 oC comparable with that of the commercial engineering plastics.
 

General Papers: Functional Materials
8:00 AM-12:00 PM, Wednesday, August 22, 2007 Westin Boston Waterfront -- Douglas, Oral

Division of Polymer Chemistry

The 234th ACS National Meeting, Boston, MA, August 19-23, 2007