Soluble conducting poly(dipropargyl ether) formation studied using ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy

Cyclopolymerization of dipropargyl ether was carried out in nitrogen atmosp here with different initiators (KSCN/KCl/KBr/KI) in dimethyl formamide. The rate of polymerization was determined for different conditions and used fo r comparing the efficiency of the initiators. KSCN and KI were found to be effective initiators for cyclopolymerization. The resulting polymer exhibit s good solubility in common organic solvents and exhibited solvatochromic b ehaviour. The results from H-1 NMR, FT-IR and UV-Visible spectra of poly(di propargyl ether), PDPE supported the idea that the resulting polymer posses ses polyene structure having cyclic recurring units in the polymer backbone . Conductivity, thermogravimetric analysis and electroactivity of the polym er were also studied. The results from UV-Visible, FTIR spectroscopy and co nductivity measurements clearly revealed the doped nature of PDPE. (C) 2001 Kluwer Academic Publishers.