Photo‐Iniferter RAFT Polymerization

• Published in: Macromolecular rapid communications. Vol. 43; no. 1; pp. e2100514 - n/a
• Main Author: Hartlieb, Matthias
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.01.2022
• Subjects: Addition polymerization; Catalysis; Catalysts; Chain transfer; light; Macromolecules; Molecular Structure; Monomers; photo‐iniferter reversible addition‐fragmentation chain‐transfer; photo‐mediated polymerization; Polyimide resins; Polymerization; radical polymerization; reversible addition‐fragmentation chain‐transfer polymerization; Thermal energy; reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization; photo-mediated polymerization; photo-iniferter reversible addition-fragmentation chain-transfer; light; radical polymerization
• ISSN: 1022-1336; 1521-3927; 1521-3927
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.202100514

Light‐mediated polymerization techniques offer distinct advantages over polymerization reactions fueled by thermal energy, such as high spatial and temporal control as well as the possibility to work under mild reaction conditions. Reversible addition‐fragmentation chain‐transfer (RAFT) polymerization is a highly versatile radical polymerization method that can be utilized to control a variety of monomers and produce a vast number of complex macromolecular structures. The use of light to drive a RAFT‐polymerization is possible via multiple routes. Besides the use of photo‐initiators, or photo‐catalysts, the direct activation of the chain transfer agent controlling the RAFT process in a photo‐iniferter (PI) process is an elegant way to initiate and control polymerization reactions. Within this review, PI‐RAFT polymerization and its advantages over the conventional RAFT process are discussed in detail. The direct activation of chain transfer agents controlling a radical polymerization process by light is called a photo‐iniferter reversible addition‐fragmentation chain‐transfer (RAFT) polymerization. This method possesses a number of advantages compared to the conventional RAFT methodology. The origin, mechanistic, and applications of this technique are discussed in this review.