Synthesis and characterization of amphiphilic elastomeric copolymer poly(PIMA-co-MMA-co-PEGMA)

The work is mainly to use anionic polymerization to prepare polyisoprene, and then functionalize the end of polyisoprene as an acrylic functional group which (PIMA) can undergo radical copolymerization [1]. We choose methyl methacrylate (MMA) and poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate(PEGMA) as comonomers in radical copolymerization with PIMA in order to add viscosity and hydrophilicity to polyisoprene, leading to an amphiphilic elastomeric poly(PIMA-co-MMA-co-PEGMA) [2,3,4]. Various proportions of monomers were attempted in copolymer synthesis and the resulting copolymers were characterized.