Alcoholysis of Methyl Aluminium Biphenoxides: Excellent Initiators for the Ring Opening Polymerisation of ε-Caprolactone

✍ Scribed by Tien-Chi Liao; Yi-Lun Huang; Bor-Hunn Huang; Chu-Chieh Lin

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2003
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 191 KB
• Volume: 204
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1022-1352
• DOI: 10.1002/macp.200390054

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Several aluminium alkoxides are prepared, and their catalytic activities toward ring‐opening polymerisation of ε‐caprolactone have been investigated. The reaction of [(μ‐EDBP)AlMe]~2~ (EDBP‐H~2~: 2,2′‐ethylidenebis(4,6‐di‐tert‐butylphenol)) with 2 molar equiv. of monomethylethylene glycol yields a five‐coordinated dimeric aluminium complex, (1). [(μ‐EDBP)AlMe]~2~ reacts with 2 molar equiv. of alcohol in toluene at ambient temperature to give a four‐coordinated dimeric aluminium complex, [(EDBP)Al(μ‐OR)]~2~ (2: R = Me; 3: R = Et; 4: R = 4‐MeOC~6~H~4~). However, the reaction of [(μ‐EDBP)AlMe]~2~ with 2 molar equiv. of benzhydrol in tetrahydrofuran (THF) gives a four‐coordinated monomeric complex, [(EDBP)Al(OCHPh~2~)(THF)] (5).

Molecular structure of 1 as 20% ellipsoids, hydrogen atoms are omitted for clarity.

magnified imageMolecular structure of 1 as 20% ellipsoids, hydrogen atoms are omitted for clarity.