Poly(2‐oxazoline)s: A comprehensive overview of polymer structures and their physical properties

Abstract

Abstract Poly(2‐oxazoline)s (PAOx) are of increasing importance for a wide range of applications, mostly in the biomedical field. This review describes the synthesis of 2‐oxazoline monomers and their cationic ring‐opening polymerization, and gives a comprehensive overview of all reported PAOx homopolymers. In the second part of the review, the polymer properties of these PAOx homopolymers with varying side‐chain structures are discussed. Altogether, this review intends to serve as an encyclopedia for poly(2‐oxazoline)s enabling the straightforward selection of a polymer structure with the desired properties for a certain application. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry