Ring-opening polymerization of γ-benzyl-l-glutamate-N-carboxyanhydride in ionic liquids

This work deals with ring-opening polymerization of a representative N-carboxy-α-amino acid anhydride (NCA) in ionic liquids. The polymerization of γ-benzyl-l-glutamate-N-carboxyanhydride (BLG-NCA) with n-butylamine as an initiator in an ionic liquid ([BMI][PF6]) proceeded as a milky white dispersion with no evidence of macroscopic precipitation. The polymerization with the primary amine under suitable conditions afforded poly(amino acid) having narrow polydispersity, molecular weights close to the theoretical values, and helical secondary structure. The polymerization rate was slightly affected by the nature of the anion and hydrophobicity of the ionic liquids, while poly(BLG)s having low polydispersities were obtained regardless of the kind of the ionic liquids. Several parameters, such as the existence of organic solvent as a co-solvent and monomer concentration, had also clear effects on the polymerization rate and/or the polydispersity of the resulting poly(BLG)s. The possible interactions between the ionic liquid and NCA monomer or the ionic liquid and the initiator were characterized using FT-IR, 1H and 13C NMR measurements. The character of this polymerization process was also studied by performing kinetic investigations. We believe that this represents the first report on amine-initiated ring-opening polymerization of NCA in ionic liquid.