Engineering of Syndiotactic and Isotactic Polystyrene-Based Copolymers via Stereoselective Catalytic Polymerization

This contribution presents an updated overview of the different copolymers containing stereoregular polystyrene blocks. Special emphasis is placed on syndiospecific and isospecific copolymerization of styrene with co-monomers (ethylene and α-olefins, conjugated and non-conjugated dienes, styrene derivatives, etc.). The catalytic systems involved are described and the polymerization mechanisms are discussed. Alternative approaches (simultaneous, living, chain-transfer and graft copolymerization) and the resulting detailed structures and characteristics of the copolymers are also reported.