One-pot synthesis of well-defined amphiphilic and adaptative block copolymers via versatile combination of 'click' chemistry and ATRP

Well-defined amphiphilic PCL-b-PDMAEMA block copolymers were successfully synthesized by a combination of ATRP and 'click' chemistry following either a commutative two-step procedure or a straightforward one-pot process using CuBr?·?3Bpy as the sole catalyst. Compared to the traditional coupling method, combining ATRP and click chemistry even in a 'one-pot' process allows the preparation of PCL-b-PDMAEMA diblock copolymers characterized by a narrow molecular weight distribution and quantitative conversion of azides and alkynes into triazole functions. Moreover, the amphiphilic character of these copolymers was demonstrated by surface tension measurements and critical micellization concentration was calculated.