Fundamentals and development of high-efficiency supported catalyst systems for atom transfer radical polymerization

Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) is a controlled/living radical polymerization process developed a decade ago that allows the synthesis of tailored macromolecules. It has been widely used in the laboratory for polymer synthesis since but little use has been made of it at the industrial scale for polymer production. This is due to the low activity of the ATRP catalyst that is central to the process. Much work has been done over the years to overcome this challenge, and the greatest successes have been achieved through catalyst supporting and recycling. We present here a historical account of the development of supported ATRP catalysts while shedding light on their present and future challenges. (c) 2006 Wiley Petiodicals, Inc.