Macroporous poly(dicyclopentadiene) beads

Abstract

Macroporous poly(dicyclopentadiene) beads have been produced via chemically induced phase separation in suspension polymerization. Phase separation is promoted by the enthalpic and entropic changes induced by the polymerization of dicyclopentadiene. By using poly(1,2-butylene glycol) monobutyl ether (M n 500 g/mol), which is not soluble in the suspending medium, as the porogen, the stabilized droplets of the monomer/porogen mixture can be considered microreactors in which both polymerization and phase separation occur, resulting in solid, biphasic microspheres. The porogen is then extracted with methanol and the particles are finally dried. The resulting macroporous crosslinked poly(dicyclopentadiene) beads are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, mercury intrusion porosimetry, and nitrogen adsorption and are compared with similar bulk samples. Materials containing isolated pores as well as microstructures built with agglomerated particles have been produced. The porous microspheres showed micrometric average pores' access diameters and specific surface areas ranging from 1.3 to 3.1 m 2 /g.

Synthesis of polymers with the potential to release H2S

“…When dicyclopentadiene is polymerized with the Grubbs catalyst, the strained bicylic olefin reacts rapidly to yield a polymer and the other olefin reacts at a slower rate to yield cross-links in the PDCPD matrix. 122,124,125,[130][131][132][133] We hypothesized that the membranes underwent further cross-linking when swollen in organic solvent prior to being used as membranes because they were fabricated in the absence of solvent and initially yielded hard, solid materials that hindered the diffusion of the Grubbs catalyst. To investigate whether the Grubbs catalyst reacted when the membranes were swollen in organic solvents, they were swollen in CH2Cl2 with ethyl vinyl ether to terminate the Grubbs catalyst.…”

“…PDCPD synthesized from the polymerization of commercially available dicyclopentadiene and the Grubbs catalyst is a relatively new material. [121][122][123][124][125] This polymer is heavily cross-linked and forms a solid, hard material that, when synthesized by other catalysts, is used in the fabrication of the hoods of semitrucks and snowmobiles.…”

“…Polydicyclopentadiene (PDCPD) is an important material that has found commercial applications due to its toughness, resistance to fracture, thermal stability, and ease of manufacturing via reaction injection molding. 122,124,125,132,[140][141][142][143][144][145][146][147] For instance, this polymer is used for the hoods of semitrucks and the outer shell of snowmobiles. PDCPD is synthesized by the ring opening metathesis polymerization of dicyclopentadienea byproduct in naphtha crackersand different catalysts.…”

Functionalization and patterning of monolayers on silicon(111) and polydicyclopentadiene

“…Recently, polydicyclopentadiene (PDCPD) emerged as a new material with applications in surface science and chromatography. 167,[387][388][389][390][391][392][393][394][395] PDCPD has found many applications because of its toughness and, more recently, the presence of a high density of olefins. Because of its toughness and resistance to fracture, this material is used to make the covers on snowmobile sleds and as a protective material for hoods on semitrucks.…”

“…Because of its toughness and resistance to fracture, this material is used to make the covers on snowmobile sleds and as a protective material for hoods on semitrucks. 388,[391][392][393][394] PDCPD is also being explored for uses as the solid phase in chromatography because of its ease of synthesis in a variety of containers, its highly cross-linked structure, and the presence of olefins that can be functionalized to introduce additional selectively to separations. 167,387,388 We wished to study the surface chemistry of this polymer because its properties and low price may lend it to a variety of applications where other polymers are currently used.…”