Tetraphenylporphyrin aluminum (III) salts, TPPAlX, where X = Me, OEt, OiPr, OCHMeCH2Cl, and Cl, and bis(triphenylphosphine)imminium chloride, PPN+Cl- (1:1) react with rac-lactide, rac-LA, in neat propylene oxide, PO, to yield chains of isotactic enriched polylactide, PLA, with end groups of PO-Cl and with time these yield cyclic polymers (PO)n(PLA) where n = 2 or 3 and even higher. Herein, Al(III) acts as a Lewis acid in the ring-opening of PO in the presence of PPN+Cl- and the incipient ClCH2CHMeO- initiates the ROP of LA to yield anion chains of [(PLA)-OCHMeCH2Cl]- and then ring-opening of PO yields cycles (PO)n(PLA) with the liberation of Cl-. The resulting polymers were characterized by mass spectrometry, NMR and Powder-XRD.

Synthesis of isotactic enriched polylactide from rac-lactide via a Lewis acid catalyzed ring-opening of an epoxide

254th National Meeting (2017)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.