Bio‐based vinylphenol family: Synthesis via decarboxylation of naturally occurring cinnamic acids and living radical polymerization for functionalized polystyrenes

A series of bio‐based vinylphenols or hydroxystyrenes is prepared by simple decarboxylation of various naturally occurring cinnamic acids such as o ‐, m ‐, and p ‐coumaric; caffeic; ferulic; and sinapinic acids, which possess hydroxy groups and other substituents at different positions on the aromatic ring. After protection of the phenolic moieties with trialkylsilyl groups, reversible addition–fragmentation chain‐transfer polymerization is accomplished with cumyl dithiobenzoate to afford various bio‐based hydroxyl‐protected polystyrenes with controlled molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distributions. Subsequent deprotection of the silyl groups under mild conditions results in a series of well‐defined functionalized polystyrenes possessing different numbers (mono‐, di‐, tri‐) of hydroxy groups at different positions ( o , m , p ). The obtained functionalized polystyrenes show unique thermal properties depending on the substituents, and those with phenol and catechol groups serve as reducing agents for silver ions. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 58 , 91–100