US 12,448,467 B2
Branched polymers
Steve Rannard, Liverpool (GB); Pierre Chambon, Liverpool (GB); and Savannah Cassin, Liverpool (GB)
Assigned to THE UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL, Liverpool (GB)
Appl. No. 16/608,072
Filed by The University of Liverpool, Liverpool (GB)
PCT Filed Apr. 26, 2018, PCT No. PCT/GB2018/051106
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 24, 2019,
PCT Pub. No. WO2018/197885, PCT Pub. Date Nov. 1, 2018.
Claims priority of application No. 1706658 (GB), filed on Apr. 26, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0190237 A1, Jun. 18, 2020
Int. Cl. C08F 2/38 (2006.01); C08F 2/40 (2006.01); C08F 2/42 (2006.01); C08F 12/36 (2006.01); C08F 122/10 (2006.01); C08F 222/10 (2006.01); C08F 222/38 (2006.01); C08G 83/00 (2006.01); C08F 32/06 (2006.01); C08F 36/20 (2006.01); C08F 112/36 (2006.01); C08F 132/06 (2006.01); C08F 136/20 (2006.01); C08F 212/36 (2006.01); C08F 232/06 (2006.01); C08F 236/20 (2006.01)
CPC C08F 2/38 (2013.01) [C08F 12/36 (2013.01); C08F 122/1006 (2020.02); C08F 222/102 (2020.02); C08F 222/1063 (2020.02); C08F 222/1067 (2020.02); C08F 222/385 (2013.01); C08G 83/005 (2013.01); C08F 2/40 (2013.01); C08F 2/42 (2013.01); C08F 32/06 (2013.01); C08F 36/20 (2013.01); C08F 112/36 (2013.01); C08F 132/06 (2013.01); C08F 136/20 (2013.01); C08F 212/36 (2013.01); C08F 222/1025 (2020.02); C08F 222/103 (2020.02); C08F 222/1035 (2020.02); C08F 222/104 (2020.02); C08F 222/1045 (2020.02); C08F 222/1055 (2020.02); C08F 232/06 (2013.01); C08F 236/20 (2013.01); C08F 2438/00 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of preparing a branched polymer comprising the free radical chain-growth polymerisation of one or more multivinyl monomers, and optionally one or more monovinyl monomers, in the presence of one or more chain transfer agents, using a source of radicals;
wherein at least 1 molar equivalent of chain transfer agent is used relative to molar equivalent of said one or more multivinyl monomers;
provided that when one or more multivinyl monomers plus one or more monovinyl monomers are incorporated, then 50 mol % or more of the vinyl monomers used are multivinyl monomers;
wherein the conversion, during said free radical polymerisation, of double bond functionality to saturated carbon-carbon bonds in the polymer is 80% or more;
wherein a branched architecture of the branched polymer is formed by propagating more than one vinyl group of at least one multivinyl monomer molecule of said one or more multivinyl monomers into separate vinyl polymer chain segments; and
wherein the one or more chain transfer agents is selected from a thiol, alpha-methylstyrene dimer, 2-isopropoxyethanol, and any combination thereof.