New catalysts for the synthesis of highly reactive polyisobutylene: chloroaluminate imidazole-based ionic liquids in the presence of diisopropyl ether

Abstract

The use of [emim]Cl–AlCl₃ in combination with diisopropyl ether allowed us to synthesize highly reactive polyisobutylene with an exceptionally high exo-olefin end group content (≥90%) and a relatively narrow molecular weight distribution (M_w/M_n ≤ 2.0) at a high reaction temperature (0 °C–10 °C) and monomer concentration ([IB] = 5.2 M–7.8 M).