SET‐LRP synthesis of PMHDO‐g‐PNIPAM well‐defined amphiphilic graft copolymer

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A well‐defined amphiphilic graft copolymer, consisting of hydrophobic polyallene‐based backbone and hydrophilic poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) side chains, was prepared by the combination of living coordination polymerization, single electron transfer‐living radical polymerization (SET‐LRP), and the grafting‐from strategy. First, the double‐bond‐containing backbone was prepared by [(η3‐allyl)NiOCOCF3]2‐initiated living coordination polymerization of 6‐methyl‐1,2‐heptadiene‐4‐ol (MHDO). Next, the pendant hydroxyls in every repeating unit of poly(6‐methyl‐1,2‐heptadiene‐4‐ol) (PMHDO) homopolymer were treated with 2‐chloropropionyl chloride to give PMHDO‐Cl macroinitiator. Finally, PNIPAM side chains were grown from PMHDO backbone via SET‐LRP of N‐isopropylacrylamide initiated by PMHDO‐Cl macroinitiator in N,N‐dimethylformamide/2‐propanol using copper(I) chloride/tris(2‐(dimethylamino)ethyl)amine as catalytic system to afford PMHDO‐g‐PNIPAM graft copolymers with a narrow molecular weight distribution (Mw/Mn = 1.19). The critical micelle concentration (cmc) in water was determined by fluorescence probe technique and the effects of pH and salinity on the cmc of PMHDO‐g‐PNIPAM were also investigated. The micellar morphology was found to be spheres using transmission electron microscopy.