Sustainable Polymerizations in Recoverable Microemulsions

Free radical and atom-transfer radical polymerizations were conducted in monomer/ionic liquid microemulsions. After the polymerization and isolation of the resultant polymers, the mixture of the catalyst and ionic liquids (surfactant and continuous phase) can be recovered and reused, thereby dramatically improving the environmental sustainability of such chemical processing. The addition of monomer to recovered ionic liquid mixtures regenerates transparent, stable microemulsions that are ready for the next polymerization cycle upon addition of initiator. The method combines the advantages of IL recycling and microemulsion polymerization and minimizes environmental disposable effects from surfactants and heavy metal ions.