Multi-State Catalysis for Control of Polymer Sequence Distribution

在化学学部有机动力学项目的支持下，斯坦福大学的Robert Waymouth教授将开发一种新的合成具有确定序列分布的烯烃聚合物的动力学策略。一个特定的目标是制备和研究新的配位化合物，可以呈现多个配位位点或烯烃插入的动力学状态。Waymouth教授进行这些研究的方法是设计能在聚合反应过程中在两种或多种动力学状态之间相互转换的配位复合物，每种状态对共聚单体具有不同的立体选择性或动力学选择性。将研究配位配合物的相互转化，以制备链嵌段聚合物、嵌段共聚物、共聚物和交替共聚物。目前的认识状态不允许先验地预测给定配位化合物的结构如何影响其对两种不同单体的动力学选择性；因此，提出的研究的一个重要目标是更好地理解催化剂结构与共聚行为的关系。有机和大分子化学项目支持Robert Waymouth教授，他的研究工作将使学生参与有机和有机金属合成、催化烯烃聚合以及聚合物结构和性质分析等高度跨学科的研究领域。重点是催化反应性的基本模式，但这个研究项目是在一个重要的技术领域，许多学生在催化、聚烯烃制造、材料化学和纳米技术领域的公司都很受欢迎。Waymouth教授已经成功地将技术授权给有兴趣的工业合作伙伴，这些合作伙伴是由NSF资助的，其中一个案例是NIST授予BP Amoco的主要奖项。其他目标包括继续招收优秀的女学生，并指导研究生和本科生的女学生，其中许多人已经在工业界取得了成功的职业生涯。

With the support of the Organic Dynamics Program in the Chemistry Division, Professor Robert Waymouth of Stanford University will develop a new kinetic strategy for the synthesis of olefin polymers of defined sequence distribution. A specific objective is to prepare and study new coordination compounds that can present multiple coordination sites or kinetic states for olefin insertion. Professor Waymouth's approach for these studies is to design coordination complexes that can interconvert between two or more kinetic states during the course of the polymerization reaction, with each state having a different stereoselectivity or kinetic selectivity toward the comonomers. The interconversion of the coordination complexes will be examined for the preparation of strereoblock polymers, block copolymers, copolymers and alternating copolymers. The current state of understanding does not allow the prediction, a priori, of how the structure of a given coordination compound will influence its kinetic selectivity towards two different monomers; thus an important objective of the proposed studies is to develop a better understanding of the relationship of catalyst structure to copolymerization behavior.The Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program supports Professor Robert Waymouth whose research effort will engage students in a highly interdisciplinary research area that combines organic and organometallic synthesis, catalytic olefin polymerization, and analysis of polymer structure and properties. The focus is on fundamental patterns of catalytic reactivity, but this research program is in an important area of technology and many students are highly sought by companies working in the areas spanning catalysis, polyolefin manufacturing, materials chemistry and nanotechnology. Professor Waymouth has been successful in licensing technologies to interested industrial partners that were initiated with NSF funding, leading, in one case, to a major NIST award to BP Amoco. Additional objectives include continuing to recruit outstanding female students and mentoring both graduate and undergraduate women students, many of whom have gone on to successful careers in industry.