Synthesis of an alternating copolymer of the dense 1,2,3‐triazole backbone carrying t‐butyl ester and nitrile side chains

Abstract

AbstractIn these decades, synthesis of polymers with controlled monomer sequences has been of increasing importance in polymer chemistry. When we tested synthesis of a heterodimer of 4‐azido‐5‐hexynoic acid derivatives carrying t‐butyl (tBu) ester and tBu amide side chains for preparation of an alternating copolymer, we unexpectedly obtained a heterodimer precursor carrying tBu ester and nitrile side chains, in a high yield. Since dense 1,2,3‐triazole polymers carrying nitrile side chains are expected as a new functional polymer, the heterodimer is polymerized by copper(I)‐catalyzed azide–alkyne cycloaddition polymerization to obtain an alternating copolymer carrying tBu ester and nitrile side chains in this study. Since 1,2,3‐triazole and nitrile moieties are known to be ligands for metal ions, the complex formation of the alternating copolymer with PdCl2 is also investigated by NMR. In the presence of PdCl2, 1H NMR spectra show broad and separated signals due to the free and complexed copolymers, indicative of slow exchange. Pulse‐field‐gradient spin‐echo NMR data indicated that the coordination of alternating copolymer to PdCl2 made the copolymer chains take a more compact conformation under dilute conditions. The density functional theory calculations indicated that the alternating copolymer coordinated to PdCl2 preferentially through the 1,2,3‐triazole nitrogen and nitrile nitrogen atoms.