New azo-chromophore-containing multiblock poly(butadiene)s synthesized by the combination of ring-opening metathesis polymerization and click chemistry

A combination of ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) and click chemistry approach was utilized for the first time in preparation of multiblock copolymers. The dibromo-functionalized telechelic poly(butadiene) (PBD) was synthesized firstly by ROMP of 1,5-cyclooctadiene in the presence of a symmetrical difunctional chain transfer agent and transformed into diazido-telechelic PBD, which was then reacted with a dialkynyl-containing azobenzene chromophore via click reaction, producing novel multiblock PBDs collected by azobenzene groups and newly formed triazole moieties. The monomer and polymer were characterized by IR, UV–vis, LC/MS, and NMR techniques. The produced multiblock copolymers have molecular weights within 13.3 and 57.8 kDa, and their polydispersity indices ranging from 1.98 to 2.38 by gel permeation chromatography measurement. The multiblock PBDs containing azo chromophores and triazole moieties with or without hydrogen-bonding interreaction with 4,4′-dihydroxybiphenyl molecule exhibited different photoisomerization efficiency from trans to cis as observation in UV–vis spectroscopy. The morphologies of multiblock PBDs were also investigated by atom force microscopy.