Bradley University1, Peoria, IL 61625 Boston University2, Boston, MA 02215
Redox-active polymers have been of interest for their potential utility in many different applications. The goal of this project was to synthesize redox-active, water-soluble polymer nanoparticles containing ferrocene moieties. A ferrocene-conjugated monomer for use in radical polymerization was synthesized by the esterification of ferrocenecarboxylic acid and 2-hydroxyethylacrylate. Several different esterification techniques were explored, and the Steglich esterification was found to be the most efficient. In addition, ferrocenylacetic acid was also considered as a monomer component. Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), a convenient method for producing polymers of low polydispersity and controlled size, was used to polymerize the monomer. A polymer was successfully made, and ongoing research is focused on the synthesis of block copolymers composed of [Ferrocenyl ethyl ester acrylate] (FEA)-co-[oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate] (OEGMMA).
[Abstract (DOCX)]