Elucidating the use of Green Solvents in Suzuki Polymerization Reactions
Disciplines
Polymer Chemistry
Abstract (300 words maximum)
Determining the Viability of Green Solvents in Suzuki Polymerization Reactions
Julien Layton and Graham S. Collier
Current palladium-catalyzed Suzuki polymerizations often use the solvent toluene due to its success in synthesizing polymers, however toluene is a toxic solvent which can have adverse effects on the central nervous system. The goal of this project was to test if p-cymene, a green solvent, could be used in the place of toluene to decrease the use of toxic reagents during the synthesis of conjugated polymers. To test the viability of p-cymene, a reaction scheme was laid out to first determine the yield of the PSB polymer using toluene and then p-cymene in order to compare the yields and molecular weights. Once a baseline yield was established using p-cymene, reaction yields ~30-40%, further polymerizations were performed to try and increase the polymerization yield by screening various reaction conditions including temperature and choice of catalyst. The data shows that the PSB polymer can be synthesized in p-cymene, however p-cymene does not perform as well as toluene which produces higher percent yields and number average molecular weights. Further steps still need to be taken to determine the best conditions for p-cymene before it can be efficiently used as a replacement for toluene. For a future direction, the tertiary carbon in the para position should be evaluated to determine if it is involved in side-reactions which could be the source of low yielding reactions.
Academic department under which the project should be listed
Chemistry and Biochemistry
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Dr. Graham Collier
Elucidating the use of Green Solvents in Suzuki Polymerization Reactions
Determining the Viability of Green Solvents in Suzuki Polymerization Reactions
Julien Layton and Graham S. Collier
Current palladium-catalyzed Suzuki polymerizations often use the solvent toluene due to its success in synthesizing polymers, however toluene is a toxic solvent which can have adverse effects on the central nervous system. The goal of this project was to test if p-cymene, a green solvent, could be used in the place of toluene to decrease the use of toxic reagents during the synthesis of conjugated polymers. To test the viability of p-cymene, a reaction scheme was laid out to first determine the yield of the PSB polymer using toluene and then p-cymene in order to compare the yields and molecular weights. Once a baseline yield was established using p-cymene, reaction yields ~30-40%, further polymerizations were performed to try and increase the polymerization yield by screening various reaction conditions including temperature and choice of catalyst. The data shows that the PSB polymer can be synthesized in p-cymene, however p-cymene does not perform as well as toluene which produces higher percent yields and number average molecular weights. Further steps still need to be taken to determine the best conditions for p-cymene before it can be efficiently used as a replacement for toluene. For a future direction, the tertiary carbon in the para position should be evaluated to determine if it is involved in side-reactions which could be the source of low yielding reactions.