Reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization was successfully applied to the synthesis of the gradient copolymer of acrylic acid and vinyl acetate in the selective solvent. The gradient degree of the copolymer was varied by the monomer feed. The monomer conversion was found to affect the ability of the copolymer to self-assemble in aqueous solutions in narrowly dispersed micelles with an average hydrodynamic radius of about 250 nm. Furthermore, the synthesized copolymers also tended to self-assemble throughout copolymerization in the selective solvent.
Keywords: copolymerization; gradient copolymers; reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization; self-assembly.