Hierarchical self-assembly and crystallization across length scales of block-copolymers from metallorganic catalysis

In the present work the self-assembling properties of two different classes of block copolymers (BCPs) having crystallizable blocks made of stereoregular polyolefins obtained with living insertion metallorganic catalysts, have been explored. A first class of polyolefin-based semicrystalline BCPs consists of di-block copolymers in which a crystalline block made of polyethylene (PE) or isotactic polypropylene (iPP) is covalently linked to different amorphous or slightly crystalline blocks. A second class of polyolefin-based semicrystalline BCPs consists of multi-block ethylene-norbornene copolymers obtained via chain shuttling polymerization. The self-assembly properties have been studied through structural and morphological characterizations performed by means of X-ray diffraction-based and microscopy techniques. Finally, a correlation of the structural and physical properties has been performed.