ABSTRACT
The anionic copolymerization of the bifunctional monomer 4-(vinylphenyl)-1-butene (VSt) with styrene (St) was carried out in a mixture of toluene and tetrahydrofuran (THF), using n-BuLi as initiator, at −40°C. During this process, the styrene type C═C bond of VSt was selectively polymerized, and the other one in its butenyl moiety remained unchanged. The molecular weight and the composition of the resulting copolymer could be well-controlled, and its molecular weight distribution was very narrow (M w/M n = 1.03–1.04). The unreacted butenyl groups of the VSt units were further reacted with chlorodimethylsilane, generating another functional copolymer with reactive chlorodimethylbutylsilyl side chains. This functional polymer was used as a backbone polymer and reacted with the anionic living polymers of St, isoprene (Is), or methyl methacrylate (MMA). This coupling reaction resulted in the formation of well-defined graft (co)polymers with a poly(St) backbone and either poly(St) or poly(Is) or poly(MMA) side chains.
