The cationic polymer poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDADMAC) is important for various applications including water purification, electrochemistry, and paper and textile modification. However, the uses of PDADMAC are limited due to its high water solubility. One method for producing water-insoluble materials incorporating DADMAC would be through the copolymerization with a hydrophobic vinyl comonomer, but the copolymerization of monomers with different solubilities and polarities is inherently challenging. This work presents the bulk copolymerization of diallyldimethylammonium hexafluorophosphate (DADMA(PF6)) and methyl methacrylate (MMA). The ion exchange of DADMAC from chloride to hexafluorophosphate yielded a water insoluble form of the ammonium monomer that is soluble in MMA. Copolymerization was successfully carried out over a wide range of monomer feed ratios that correlate strongly to the composition of the final copolymer. The highly tunable nature of the copolymerization made it possible to incorporate large percentages of either monomer. Studies of copolymer composition at a range of reaction times indicated the incorporation of MMA was slightly favored over that of DADMA(PF6). While all copolymers formed water-insoluble freestanding films, those with high incorporations of MMA had additional strength, flexibility, and clarity. The facile, reproducible polymerization method developed herein prepared copolymers containing diallyldimethylammonium moieties that can be processed into hydrophobic polymer films.

Synthesis and characterization of copolymers from diallyldimethylammonium hexafluorophosphate and methyl methacrylate

ACS Spring 2022

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