Olefins and Vinyl Polar Monomers: Bridging the Gap for Next Generation Materials

The inherent differences in reactivity between activated and non-activated alkenes prevents copolymerization using established polymer synthesis techniques. Research over the past 20 years has greatly advanced the copolymerization of polar vinyl monomers and olefins. This Review highlights the challenges associated with conventional polymerization systems and evaluates the most relevant methods which have been developed to "bridge the gap" between polar vinyl monomers and olefins. We discuss advancements in heteroatom tolerant coordination-insertion polymerizations, methods of controlling radical polymerizations to incorporate olefinic monomers, as well as combined approaches employing sequential polymerizations. Finally, we discuss state-of-the-art stimuli-responsive systems capable of facile switching between catalytic pathways and provide an outlook towards applications in which tailored copolymers are ideally suited.