Controlled synthesis of AB2 amphiphilic triarm star-shaped block copolymers by ring-opening polymerization

This paper describes the synthesis of a novel amphiphilic AB2 triarm star-shaped copolymer with A = non-toxic and biocompatible hydrophilic poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and B = biodegradable and hydrophobic poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL). A series of AB2 triarm star-shaped copolymers with different molecular-weights for the PCL block were successfully synthesized by a three-step procedure. α-Methoxy-ω-epoxy-poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO-epoxide) was first synthesized by the nucleophilic substitution of α-methoxy-ω-hydroxy-poly(ethylene oxide) (MPEO) on epichlorohydrin. In a second step, the α-methoxy-ω,ω′-dihydroxy-poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO(OH)2) macroinitiator was prepared by the selective hydrolysis of the ω-epoxy end-group of the PEO-epoxide chain. Finally, PEO(OH)2 was used as a macroinitiator for the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of ε-caprolactone (εCL) catalyzed by tin octoaote (Sn(Oct)2). PEO-epoxide, PEO(OH)2 and the AB2 triarm star-shaped copolymers were assessed by 1H NMR spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and MALDI-TOF. The behavior of the AB2 triarm star-shaped copolymer in aqueous solution was studied by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).