【Molecular Systems and Materials Chemistry】Polyamide Synthesis via Addition Polymerization: A New Polymer Synthesis via Multistep Radical Isomerization

Keita Kuroda, a doctoral student in the Department of Polymer Chemistry, and Professor Makoto Ouchi have successfully synthesized a new class of polymers that periodically contain amide linkages in the main chain through a “cascade radical isomerization polymerization,” in which multiple isomerization reactions occur sequentially during radical polymerization.
Polymers obtained by conventional addition polymerization typically possess main chains composed solely of carbon–carbon bonds. In contrast, the polymerization discovered in this study represents a new synthetic reaction that enables the incorporation of amide linkages [–CONH–] and ether linkages [R–O–R′] into the polymer backbone. By appropriate molecular design, this method can also impart degradability to the resulting polymers. The polymers produced by this isomerization polymerization possess backbone structures that cannot be obtained through conventional polymerization methods, and they have the potential to contribute to the development of functional materials and environmentally compatible materials.

This research was published on March 23, 2026, in Volume 148, Issue 12 of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the flagship journal of the American Chemical Society.

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Synthetic Polymer Chemistry