Patent ID: 8197847

Claim:
A process for making a polymer having pendant sugar side groups comprising: (i) polymerising an olefinically unsaturated monomer selected from alkyl methacrylates; alkyl acrylates; functionalised methacrylates; functionalized acrylates, glycidyl methacrylate, trimethoxysilyl propyl methacrylate, allyl methacrylate, hydroxyethyl methacrylate, hydroxypropyl methacrylate, dialkylaminoalkyl methacrylates; fluoroalkyl (meth)acrylates; methacrylic acid, acrylic acid; fumaric acid and esters thereof, itaconic acid and esters thereof, maleic anhydride; vinyl halides; acrylonitrile, methacrylonitrile; vinylidene halides of formula CH 2 ═C(Hal) 2 where each halogen is independently Cl or F; optionally substituted butadienes of the formula CH 2 ═C(R 15 )C(R 15 )═CH 2 where R 15 is independently H, C 1 -C 10 alkyl, Cl, or F; sulfonic acids or derivatives thereof of the formula CH 2 ═CHSO 2 OM wherein M is Na, K, Li or N(R 16 ) 4 where each R 16 is independently H, Cl or alkyl; acrylamide and derivatives thereof of formula CH 2 ═CHCON(R 16 ) 2 and methacrylamide and derivatives thereof of formula CH 2 ═C(CH 3 )CON(R 16 ) 2 and mixtures thereof; functionalised with (a) an azide group optionally protected by a protecting group, or (b) an alkyne group optionally protected by a protecting group, by RAFT, transition metal mediated living radical polymerization and/or atom transfer radical polymerization, to produce a polymer intermediate; (ii) removing, when present, at least a portion of the total number of protecting groups from the polymer intermediate; and (iii) reacting the polymer intermediate with at least one pendant sugar side group moiety functionalised with (a) an alkyne group or (b) an azide group respectively so that the alkyne and azide groups react to attach the pendant sugar side group to the polymer.