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Australian Journal of Chemistry Australian Journal of Chemistry Society
An international journal for chemical science
RESEARCH ARTICLE

A Potential New RAFT–Click Reaction or a Cautionary Note on the Use of Diazomethane to Methylate RAFT‐synthesized Polymers

Ming Chen A B , Graeme Moad A B and Ezio Rizzardo A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A CSIRO Materials Science and Engineering, Bag 10, Clayton South, Vic. 3169, Australia.

B Corresponding authors. Email: ming.chen@csiro.au, graeme.moad@csiro.au

Australian Journal of Chemistry 64(4) 433-437 https://doi.org/10.1071/CH10471
Submitted: 21 December 2010  Accepted: 1 February 2011   Published: 18 April 2011

Abstract

It has been found that diazomethane undergoes a facile 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition with both dithiobenzoate RAFT agents and the dithiobenzoate end‐groups of polymers formed by RAFT polymerization. Thus, 2‐cyanoprop‐2‐yl dithiobenzoate on treatment with diazomethane at room temperature provided a mixture of stereoisomeric 1,3‐dithiolanes in near quantitative (>95%) yield. A low‐molecular‐weight RAFT‐synthesized poly(methyl methacrylate) with dithiobenzoate end‐groups underwent similar reaction as indicated by immediate decolourization and a quantitative doubling of molecular weight. Higher‐molecular‐weight poly(methyl methacrylate)s were also rapidly decolourized by diazomethane and provided a product with a bimodal molecular weight distribution. Under similar conditions, the trithiocarbonate group does not react with diazomethane.


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