Recent advances in the characterization of terpyridine based supramolecular polymers

The application of std. polymer anal. techniques, such as gel permeation chromatog. (GPC) or matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOFMS) to metal contg. polymers can be complicated because of interaction of the charged materials with the GPC column material in the first and fragmentation due to the applied laser energy in the latter case. Therefore, a MALDI-TOFMS model study with a series of metal complexed terpyridine ligands was performed with the result of a better understanding of the mentioned compds. under MALDI conditions. These results were later on very helpful for the interpretation of the MALDI-TOFMS spectra obtained from the equiv. supramol. polymers. Moreover, for GPC anal. the choice of solvent and additive was found to be crucial for a successful characterization. Both aspects are discussed in detail with the result of a better understanding and improved anal. possibilities of the mentioned metal contg. polymers