Two commercially available initiators for the retarded ring-opening metathesis polymerization of dicyclopentadiene

The highly cross-linked thermoset poly(dicyclopentadiene) (pDCPD) is produced by ring-opening metathesis polymerization and has become an important material for many high-impact applications. Herein, the utility of two less common, yet commercially available ruthenium-based initiators M2 and M22 is disclosed for the polymerization of dicyclopentadiene and compared with the second generation Grubbs catalyst G2. Both initiators are suited to produce pDCPD pieces in high quality (as revealed from mechanical properties of test specimen) and offer a distinctly longer processing window than the reference initiator G2.