Convenient method of chain-growth polycondensation for well-defined aromatic polyamides

For the convenient synthesis of well-defined poly(N-octyl-p-benzamide)s with low polydispersities, the polycondensation of methyl 4-octylaminobenzoate (1) was investigated. Methyl ester monomer 1 polymerized with lithium 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexamethyldisilazide (LHMDS) in the presence of an initiator in tetrahydrofuran at -10 degrees C. The highly pure polyamide with a defined molecular weight and a low polydispersity is obtained after simple treatment of the reaction mixture with aqueous NaOH solution, followed by evaporation.