Engineering\nPolymer Architecture Through Reaction\nRates

The properties of macromolecules are intrinsically linked\nto their\nchemical composition, molecular weight distribution, and architecture.\nVariation of these features enables the creation of a vast chemical\nspace capable of accommodating diverse material properties and applications.\nThis review focuses on synthetic methodologies that exploit reaction\nrates to engineer the architecture of polymers. More specifically,\nthree complementary synthetic strategies were identified: the first\nstrategy is varying the reactivity of the monomers; the second strategy\nis implementing two simultaneous reactions (orthogonal or competitive);\nand, the third strategy is implementing reactor engineering principles,\nwhere controlling reactor parameters such as monomer concentration,\nresidence time, and flow rate results in different architectures.\nFinally, this perspective is concluded with a short discussion about\nthe challenges in <i>a posteriori</i> characterizing the\narchitecture of polymers and the benefit of kinetic models to <i>a priori</i> predict the architecture of a polymer.