Automated Synthesis and High-throughput Screening in Polymer Research: Past and Present

Hoogenboom, Richard; Meier, Michael; Schubert, Ulrich S.

Abstract:

Combinatorial techniques, parallel experimentation and high-throughput methods represent a very promising approach in order to speed up the preparation and investigation of newpolymeric materials: a large variety of parameters can be screened simultaneously resulting in new structure/ property relationships. The field of polymer research seems to be perfectly suited for parallel and combinatorial methods due to the fact that many parameters can be varied during synthesis, processing, blending as well as compounding. In addition, numerous important parameters have to be investigated, such as molecular weight, polydispersity, viscosity, hardness, stiffness and other application-specific properties. Anumber of corresponding high-throughput techniques have been developed in the last few years and their introduction into the commercial market further boosted the development. These combinatorial approaches can reduce the time-tomarket for new polymeric materials drastically compared to traditional approaches and allowa much more detailed understanding of polymers from the macroscopic to the nanoscopic scale. Here we provide an overview of the present status of combinatorial and parallel polymer synthesis and highthroughput screening.

Year:

2003

Type of Publication:

Article

Keywords:

automated synthesis; combinatorial chemistry; high throughput screening; materials; polymers

Journal:

Macromolecular Rapid Communications

Volume:

24

Pages:

15 – 32