New polyisobutylene stars XI. Synthesis and characterization of allyl-telechelic octa-arm polyisobutylene stars

Abstract.

The synthesis and characterization of a novel star comprising eight allyl-terminated polyisobutylene (PIB) arms radiating from a calix[8]arene core is described. The synthesis was accomplished by a core-first method, by inducing the living polymerization of isobutylene (IB) by a suitably functionalized calix[8]arene initiator (1) in conjunction with BCl₃-TiCl₄ coinitiators, and terminating the growth of the living PIB^⊕ arms by allyltrimethylsilane. The relative concentrations of BCl₃ and TiCl₄ are critical for the synthesis of well-defined 8-arm stars. Characterization of the products (which included triple detector GPC studies and ¹H NMR spectroscopy) indicated quantitative allylation. A mechanism which summarizes the experimental observations is proposed.