Novel Poly(arylene ether)s with Pendent Trifluoromethyl Groups

TLDR: In this paper, six perfluoroalkyl-activated bishalo monomers 4a,b−6a, b have been synthesized successfully using Pd(0)-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction of 4-chloro- or 4-fluoro-3-trifluoromethylphenylboronic acid with 1,4-dibromobenzene, 2,6-Dibromopyridine, and 2,5-diberromothiophene.

Abstract: Six novel perfluoroalkyl-activated bishalo monomers 4a,b−6a,b have been synthesized successfully using Pd(0)-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction of 4-chloro- or 4-fluoro-3-trifluoromethylphenylboronic acid with 1,4-dibromobenzene, 2,6-dibromopyridine, and 2,5-dibromothiophene. These monomers were converted to poly(arylene ether)s by nucleophilic displacement of the halogen atoms on the benzene ring with several bisphenols. The products obtained by displacement of the fluorine atoms exhibit weight-average molar masses up to 3.52 × 105 g mol-1 in GPC. Displacement of the chlorine atoms from the analogous monomer structures by bisphenols was not successful in obtaining high molar mass products. These poly(arylene ether)s showed very high thermal stability even up to 536 °C for 5% weight loss in TGA in synthetic air. Comparatively low thermal stability for the thiophene ring containing polymers was attributed to the oxidation of the sulfur atom of the thiophene ring at high temperature in air, which destroyed t...