The copolymerization of propylene oxide (PO) with styrene (St) catalyzed by Maghnite-H+ (Mag-H+) was investigated. Mag-H+, a nontoxic catalyst for cationic polymerization of vinylic and heterocyclic monomers, is a montmorillonite silicate sheet clay. This catalyst was prepared through a straight forward proton exchange process. It was found that Mag-H+ initiates the copolymerization in bulk at room temperature. Various techniques, including H1NMR, 13C-NMR, FT-IR spectroscopy, and Ubbelohde viscometer, were used to elucidate the resulting copolymers' structural characteristics. The effects of the amount of Mag-H+ and propylene oxide were studied. The yield of copolymerization depends on the amount of Mag-H+ used and the reaction time.
[REMOVED MACROBUTTON FIELD]Low-loss channel optical waveguide fabrication in Nd^3+-doped silicate glasses by femtosecond laser direct writing