Design Strategies for Functionalized Poly(2-oxazoline)s and Derived Materials

• Main Authors: Frank Wiesbrock, Verena Schenk, Elisabeth Rossegger
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2013-07-01
• Series: Polymers
• Subjects: poly(2-oxazoline)s; cationic ring-opening polymerization; telechelic end-group functionalization; polymeranalogous reactions
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/5/3/956

The polymer class of poly(2-oxazoline)s currently is under intensive investigation due to the versatile properties that can be tailor-made by the variation and manipulation of the functional groups they bear. In particular their utilization in the biomedic(in)al field is the subject of numerous studies. Given the mechanism of the cationic ring-opening polymerization, a plethora of synthetic strategies exists for the preparation of poly(2-oxazoline)s with dedicated functionality patterns, comprising among others the functionalization by telechelic end-groups, the incorporation of substituted monomers into (co)poly(2-oxazoline)s, and polymeranalogous reactions. This review summarizes the current state-of-the-art of poly(2-oxazoline) preparation and showcases prominent examples of poly(2-oxazoline)-based materials, which are retraced to the desktop-planned synthetic strategy and the variability of their properties for dedicated applications.