Sylvain Caillol

Maleimides As a Building Block for the Synthesis of High Performance Polymers

ABSTRACT Maleimides are gaining a great deal of attention in both scientific and industrial communities since they can be used in high performance macromolecular systems: thermosets with high temperature stability, self-healing systems, or in click chemistry reactions. After an introduction, this review reports in the first part the different routes to synthesize maleimides. In the second part, this review focuses on the use of maleimides in polymer synthesis, first through nucleophilic reactions, second via cycloaddition to yield remendable systems, and then via radical polymerization. Finally, the industrial availability of maleimides is discussed.

Urea- and Thiourea-Catalyzed Aminolysis of Carbonates.

The aminolysis of (poly)carbonates by (poly)amines provides access to non-isocyanate polyurethanes (NIPUs) that are toxic-reagent-free analogues of polyurethanes (PUs). Owing to their low reactivity, the ring opening of cyclic carbonates requires the use of a catalyst. Herein, we report that the more available and cheaper ureas could advantageously be used for catalyzing the formation of NIPUs at the expense of the thiourea analogues. In addition, we demonstrate a medium-range pKa of the (thio)urea and an unqeual substitution pattern is critical for controlling the efficiency of the carbonate opening.