Polystyrene‐<i>block</i>‐polylactide obtained by the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and ring‐opening polymerization with a commercial dual initiator

Abstract

Abstract A polystyrene (PS)‐ b ‐polylactide (PLA) block copolymer was prepared from the combination of atom transfer radical polymerization and ring‐opening polymerization with commercially available 2,2,2‐tribromoethanol as a dual initiator in a sequential two‐step procedure. Hydroxyl‐terminated polystyrene (PS‐OH)s with various molecular weights were first prepared with polydispersity indices lower than 1.3; these provided valuable macroinitiators for the polymerization of D,L ‐lactide. A block copolymer with a composition allowing the formation of hexagonally packed PLA cylinders in a PS matrix was then obtained. The PS‐ b ‐PLA thin films revealed, after vapor solvent annealing, a hexagonally packed organization of the PLA cylinders, which was oriented perpendicularly to the surface of the film. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011