Controlled Disassembly of Elemental Sulfur: An Approach to the Precise Synthesis of Polydisulfides
Ji‐Yan Chao, Tian‐Jun Yue, Bai‐Hao Ren, Ge‐Ge Gu, Xiao‐Bing Lu, Wei‐Min Ren
Abstract
Abstract The usage of elemental sulfur (S 8 ) for constructing sulfur‐containing polymers is of great significance in terms of sulfur resource utilization or fabrication of high‐performance polymers. Currently, the random disassembly of S 8 hinders its direct use in the precise synthesis of sulfur‐containing polymers. Herein, we provide an effective strategy for controlling the dismantlement of S 8 to synthesize polydisulfides, a promising category of dynamic bonds containing polymers. In this strategy, the completely alternating copolymerization of one sulfur atom, which is orderly derived from S 8 , with episulfides is achieved with MTBD (7‐methyl‐1,5,7‐triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec‐5‐ene) as catalyst and [PPN]SbF 6 ([PPN] + is bis(triphenylphosphine)iminium) as cocatalyst. Delightedly, the living‐ polymerization feature, and the good monomer compatibility allows for the access to diverse polydisulfides. Furthermore, the density functional theory (DFT) was employed to elaborate the copolymerization process.