Synthesis of graft polyrotaxane by simultaneous capping of backbone and grafting from rings of pseudo-polyrotaxane.

Graft polyrotaxanes, with poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) graft chains on the ring components were synthesized by the simultaneous ring-opening polymerization of ε-caprolactone from both ends of the backbone polymer, an end-functionalized polyethylene glycol (PEG) and the formation of inclusion complexes with α-cyclodextrin (α-CD). PEG with multiple functional groups at each end was prepared by the condensation of PEG-amine and D-gluconic acid; the PEG derivative formed an inclusion complex with α-CD. The polymerization of multiple hydroxy groups at the backbone ends resulted in a star-shaped end group, which served as a bulky capping group to prevent dethreading. In contrast, PEG with only one hydroxy group at each end did not produce polyrotaxanes, indicating that single PCL chains were too thin to confine α-CDs to the complex. In addition, the grafting polymerization proceeded properly only when robust hydrogen bonds formed between α-CDs were dissociated using a basic catalyst. Since the dissociation also induced dethreading, kinetic control of the polymerization and dissociation were crucial for producing graft polyrotaxanes. Consequently, this three-step reaction yielded graft polyrotaxanes in a good yield, demonstrating a significant simplification of the synthesis of graft polyrotaxanes.

Organic layered crystals with adjustable interlayer distances of 1-naphthylmethylammonium n-alkanoates and isomerism of hydrogen-bond networks by steric dimension.

A series of 1-naphthylmethylammonium n-alkanoates from acetate to triacontanoate produce isomorphic layered structures in the crystalline state. The interlayer distances, d-spacings, are proportional to the lengths of the alkyl chains. This is attributed to synergic intermolecular interactions; pi-pi and CH-pi interactions of the naphthalene rings between the cations, hydrophobic interactions of the alkyl chains, and two-dimensional hydrogen-bond networks between the primary ammonium cations and the carboxylate anions. Salts made from carboxylic acids wider than 5.5 A in the cross sections produce another columnar structure with a one-dimensional ladder-type hydrogen-bond network. Steric parameters of the acid components provide an explanation for the isomerism of the hydrogen-bond network.

Crystal structures and topochemical polymerizations of 7,7,8,8-tetrakis(alkoxycarbonyl)quinodimethanes.

Highly conjugated monomers, 7,7,8,8-tetrakis(alkoxycarbonyl)quinodimethanes (methoxy (1a), ethoxy (1b), isopropoxy (1c), benzyloxy (1d), chloroethoxy (1e), and bromoethoxy (1f)), were synthesized. Recrystallizations of 1a, 1c, 1e, and 1f yielded two crystal forms (prisms (1a-A) and needles (1a-B), needles (1c-A) and plates (1c-B), prisms (1e-A) and plates (1e-B), and prisms (1f-A) and needles (1f-B)), which have different molecular packing modes by X-ray crystal structure analysis, indicating that the crystals are polymorphic. In the photopolymerizations of these monomer crystals in the solid state, 1a-A, 1e-A, and 1f-A polymerized topochemically to give crystalline polymers. For their thermal polymerizations in the solid state, in addition to 1a-A, 1e-A, and 1f-A, 1e-B and 1f-B polymerized, but polymers formed from the 1e-B and 1f-B were amorphous. The packing of quinodimethane molecules in the crystals was defined by four kinds of parameters, stacking distance (d(s)), the distance between the reacting exomethylene carbon atoms (d(cc)), the angles formed between the stacking axis and longer axis of the monomer molecule (theta(1)), and the shorter axis of the monomer molecule (theta(2)), and then the polymerization reactivity of these quinodimethanes in the solid state was discussed on the basis of these parameters.