Molecule-Design, Preparation, Characterization, And Functionalization Of Hyperbranched Polymers

Hyperbranched polymers first reported by the researches of Dopont Company at the end of 1980s are highly branched and three-dimensional macromolecules. Due to their unique physical and chemical properties such as low viscosity, good solubility, high rheologibility, and large amount of terminal groups, hyperbranched polymers get more and more interesting over the last decade. This kind of polymers may be play a very important role in the near future in the fields of drug-delivery, gene engineering, non-linear optics, nano-material, self-assembly supermacromoleule, energy transfer and acceptor, macromolecular building"block", catalyst, sensor, rhelogical additive, and so on. However, three key problems must be solved before they are used commercially. First, the manufacture of hyperbranched polymers is expensive since most of AB₂-type monomers that are used to prepare hyperbranched polymers can not be commercially available. Especially for some polymers like hyperbranched polyurethanes, it is very difficult to be synthesized by the classic method, polycondensation of AB₂-type monomers, due to the high reactivity of NCO functional group. Second, the molecular weight distribution of the hyperbranched polymers obtained is too broad, and the architecture of them can not be well controlled. Third, Functionalization of hyperbranched polymers based on their terminal functional groups is still in fancy, so the latent advantage and potentials of these macromolecules are not utilized widely.Because of its theoretical and practical importance, synthesis and functionalization of hyperbranched polymers was chosen as the major of this doctoral dissertation. This work aims at exploring the answers of the three problems aforementioned. First of all, a novel strategy to synthesize hyperbranched polymers by...