Polythioethers by thiol-ene click polyaddition of α,ω-alkylene thiols.

The straightforward synthesis of a series of poly(thioether)s by photoinduced thiol-ene click polyaddition of α,ω-alkylene thiols is reported. It is found that linear and telechelic poly(thioether)s can be directly obtained from α,ω-alkylene thiols with, for example, alkyl chain length of m = 1,2,3, and 9. The reaction proceeds without additives such as (radical) initiators or metal compounds and can simply be carried out by UV-irradiation of the bulk monomer or monomer solution.