Polyethers are a well-established class of polymers in permanent good standing due to their good thermal/chemical stability and versatile syntheses. They are used in a wide range of applications that goes from industrial manufacturing to nanomedicine. This polymer family is usually limited to polyethers based on low chain aliphatic polyethers that can be obtained by the ring-opening polymerization of the corresponding cyclic ethers. In this work we report the production of medium-to-long chain aliphatic polyethers by a bulk polycondensation method using a simple and recyclable protic ionic liquid organocatalysts (H+-ILs). H+-ILs organocatalysts were easily prepared by forming stoichiometric and non-stoichiometric complexes of methanesulfonic acid (MSA) and 1,5,7-triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD). The non-stoichiometric 3:1 MSA:TBD complex showed superior thermal stability and catalytic activity, and it was used for the bulk synthesis of a wide range of aliphatic polyethers with a number of methylene units ranging from 6 to 12 units. We envisage the potential of this economic & sustainable synthesis strategy as a green approach to produce unique polyethers.

Facile synthesis of medium- and long-chain aliphatic polyethers using organocatalysts

2019 Spring National Meeting

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