Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), having the same repeat units as poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), is a nonionic hydrophilic polymer. It is of great interest in both biology and materials science as it demonstrates a unique lack of adhesion to proteins, and amphiphilic block copolymers containing PEO are widely used in biological applications such as drug delivery. The synthesis of PEO homopolymers and block copolymers can be experimentally challenging, however, with the typical method involving a hydroxyl-terminated polymer reacted with an air sensitive potassium naphthalenide to form a potassium alkoxide. This method requires removal of naphthalene from the final product and undesirable reactions with water impurities in the reaction. We report a synthetic route that avoids these limitations by driving off water, through azeotropic distillation, of the alcohol + potassium hydroxide / water + alkoxide equilibrium. This pushes the equilibrium towards the formation of the alkoxide while avoiding the use of naphthalene and removing any water impurities. GPC and NMR are used to characterize the polydispersity and molecular weight of polymers made from various alcohols or the extension of premade PEO polymers.

Azeotrope enabled polymerization of ethylene oxide

248th National Meeting (2014)

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