Abstract

Frontal ring-opening metathesis polymerization (FROMP) has potential for use in rapid fabrication of structural polymers. However, the high activity of the ruthenium catalyst used for FROMP has limited the working time to <1 h. We report the use of alkyl phosphites as inhibitors for Grubbs' type catalysts to substantially extend working time. Subtle changes in alkyl phosphite structure are shown to impact both pot life and frontal velocity. Specifically, by varying phosphite structure and concentration, we are able to control pot life between 0.25 and 30 h while still allowing FROMP to proceed at velocities between 1 and 8 cm/min to yield fully cured thermoset polymers. These results are of interest for conventional ROMP synthesis and may open the way to new FROMP-based manufacturing possibilities.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)609-612
Number of pages4
JournalACS Macro Letters
Volume6
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 20 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Organic Chemistry
  • Polymers and Plastics
  • Inorganic Chemistry
  • Materials Chemistry

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