Flavylium-Containing Stimuli-Responsive RAFT Polymers: Synthesis and Enhanced Stability

Yuxi Liu, Peter W. McDonald, San H. Thang, Chris Ritchie

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Flavyliums are abundant naturally occurring, stimuli-responsive cationic chromophores found in anthocyanins that constitute the majority of red and blue pigments found in flora. While synthetic molecular derivatives have been devised to fine-tune these characteristics, the development of polymeric materials in this regard remains scarce. To address this, a flavylium-based methacrylamide derivative (FlavM-A1) was successfully synthesized, but its radical polymerization proved to be ineffective. To overcome this constraint, a convergent synthetic route for a series of flavylium-containing polymers was developed, employing reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization followed by postmodification to install the flavylium chromophore. The flavylium-containing polymers described in this work exhibit improved hydrolytic stability in their flavylium moieties compared to the small-molecule FlavM-A1 while both possess interesting stimuli responsiveness and surfactant-like properties.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3451–3461
Number of pages11
JournalMacromolecules
Volume57
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Mar 2024
  • ARC Centre of Excellence for Enabling Eco-Efficient Beneficiation of Minerals

    Galvin, K. P., Thang, S. H., Hapgood, K., Jameson, G. J., Zhao, C., Skinner, W., Franks, G. V., Armes, S., Miller, J., Xu, Z., Davis, R., Scales, P., Wanless, E. J., Evans, G. M., Nguyen, A., Beattie, D. A., Eksteen, J., Williams, K. C., Ata, S., Webber, G. B., Peng, Y., Moreno-Atanasio, R., Teo, B. M., Brito e Abreu, S., Ballantyne, G., Krasowska, M., Noble, A., Stickland, A. D., Doroodchi, E., Runge, K., Webster, N. A. S., Ireland, P., Forbes, E. & MacRae, C.

    Australian Research Council (ARC)

    29/07/2029/07/27

    Project: Research

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