Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol.134, No.46, 18916-18919, 2012
Chain-Growth Polymerization of 2-Chlorothiophenes Promoted by Lewis Acids
Lewis acids promote the polymerization of several 2-chloroalkylenedioxythiophenes, providing high-molecular-weight conjugated polymers. The proposed mechanism is a cationic chain-growth polymerization, as confirmed by end-capping reactions and a linear correlation of molecular weight with percent conversion. The "living" character of this process was used to prepare new block copolymers.