Hydrovinylsilanes in sequential reactions: A route to graft copolymers [1]

The radical copolymerization of styrene or methyl methacrylate and diphenylvinylsilane 1 led to Si–H functionalized polyolefins 5–7 and 8–10, respectively. The efficiency of incorporation of 1 was low. In addition, the molecular weights were inversely proportional to the concentration of 1, indicating that, while the silane behaves as a monomer (Si–CH=CH2), its primary role was as a chain termination and a chain transfer (Si–H) agent. The copolymers contained about 1 mol% Si–H groups: the methacrylate derivatives also contained Si‐vinyl groups. The residual Si–H groups in the copolymers remained chemically active. It was thus possible to graft vinylsilicones onto 9 using transition metal catalyzed hydrosilation to give 11, or vinylanthracene onto 9 using radically induced hydrosilation to give 12. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Heteroatom Chem 9:241–251, 1998