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This account summarizes the impact that the quest for sustainability is having on the field of organic polyconjugate molecules and polymers for plastic (opto)electronics. While at the proof-of-concept level, the design criteria as well as the preferred synthetic strategies to access new and improved materials have been dominated by the need for performance. The ongoing transition from the lab environment to the industrial scale imposes strict limitations on the cost and overall environmental impact of new materials. We here summarize our efforts on the development of new design criteria and synthetic strategies aimed at improving sustainability – without compromising performance – in organic polyconjugated molecules. The article is composed of three sections: Introduction and motivation, sustainability through improved synthetic methods and through improved design. Outline 1 Introduction and Motivation 2 Sustainable Reaction Methods 2.1 The New Tools: Reactions in Aqueous Solution of Surfactants 2.2 Intrinsically More Sustainable Reactions: Direct Arylation 2.3 Sustainable Multistep Protocols: Combining Micellar, Solventless, and Mechanochemical Methods 3 Sustainability as a Design Criterion: De Novo Design 4 Conclusion [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An alternating naphthalene dianhydride bithiophene copolymer (PNDAT2) is prepared by a combined direct arylation polycondensation and the latent pigment approach. PNDAT2 is the first reported example of an alternating conjugated polymer containing naphthalene dianhydride, the oxo‐analogue of naphthalene diimide often used in electron‐acceptor conjugated polymers. PNDAT2 is resistant to organic solvents and can be generated directly as film by thermal treatment of the soluble tetraester precursor PNTET2. PNDAT2 is characterized by a LUMO level of −3.9 eV, similar to that of established naphthalene diimide containing soluble copolymers. This route to insoluble electron acceptor copolymers by thermal cleavage of soluble precursors is an alternative to classical cross‐linking or orthogonal processing strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct (hetero)arylation (DHA) is playing a key role in improving the efficiency and atom economy of C–C cross coupling reactions, so has impacts in pharmaceutical and materials chemistry. Current research focuses on further improving the generality, efficiency and selectivity of the method through careful tuning of the reaction conditions and the catalytic system. Comparatively fewer studies are dedicated to the replacement of the high-boiling-point organic solvents dominating the field and affecting the overall sustainability of the method. We show herein that the use of a 9:1 v/v emulsion of an aqueous Kolliphor 2 wt% solution while having toluene as the reaction medium enables the preparation of relevant examples of thiophene-containing π-conjugated building blocks in high yield and purity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Keywords: materials science; polymerization; semiconductors; thermochemistry; voltammetry B The front cover b shows the thermally induced transformation of a soluble and electron-rich naphthalenetetraester-bithiophene copolymer into the corresponding insoluble and electron-poor naphthalenetetraanhydride derivative. Materials science, polymerization, semiconductors, thermochemistry, voltammetry. [Extracted from the article]