Using the abundant, nontoxic and inexpensive CO2 as a renewable C1 feedstock, the coupling of CO2 and epoxides provides an attractive way for preparing polycarbonates and has been commercialized in recent years. The hydrophobic nature and lack of functionalities of the commonly studied CO2-based polycarbonates however, have prevented their use in functional materials, especially for biomedical applications. In order to expand the use of CO2-based polycarbonates towards improved material performances, it is necessary to synthesize more diverse CO2-based polymers with functionalities. In this work, we demonstrate the facile preparation of diverse and functional nanoparticles derived from CO2-based triblock polycarbonates system. By judicious use of water as chain-transfer reagent in the propylene oxide/CO2 polymerization, PPC diols are successfully produced and serve as a macroinitiator in the subsequent allyl glycidyl ether/CO2 coupling reaction. The resulting ABA triblock polycarbonate can be further functionalized with various thiols by radical mediated thiol-ene click chemistry. The functionalized triblock polycarbonates readily form spherical nanoparticles with different charges upon suspension in DI water. This class of amphiphilic polycarbonates could provide a powerful platform for biomedical applications.

Construction of Versatile and Functional Nanostructures Derived from CO2-based Polycarbonates

251st National Meeting (2016)

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