Multicomponent Tandem Polymerization of Aromatic Alkynes, Carbonyl Chloride, and Fischer's Base toward Poly(diene merocyanine)s

Multicomponent polymerization (MCP) is a popular tool to construct polymers with diverse structure, simple operation, and high efficiency, which faces the challenges of limited product structures. Multicomponent tandem polymerization (MCTP), combining two or multiple reactions in a one-pot fashion, could expand the scope of MCP and enrich the polymer structures. Herein, a one-pot three-component tandem polymerization of diynes, carbonyl chloride, and Fischer's base has been developed to afford conjugated poly(diene merocyanine)s with mild condition, satisfactory molecular weights (M_w up to 10900 g/mol) and yields (up to 81%). The polymers enjoy good solubility and high thermal stability. The unique emission behavior of the model compound and polymer show that they are aggregation-induced emission (AIE)-active, suggesting that the diene merocyanine moiety is a potential AIEgen. This MCTP shows great potential in the preparation of functional polymer materials, which could build new AIE functional units directly from the polymerization, demonstrating its synthetic simplicity and elegance.