Enzymatic ring-opening polymerization (ROP) represents a ‘greener’ approach to the synthesis of polylactides and polylactones. However, there are discrepancies in the literature on the lipase specificity toward a particular monomer (such as L-lactide), and many disagreements on the molecular weights produced by similar methods. To enable a better understanding of the enzymaitc ROP reaction, we carried out a systematic evaluation of the polymerization process under various conditions including the water contents in lipases and solvents, and different types of ionic liquids. Our custom-made ionic liquids are designed to be compatible with enzymes and for the high-temperature reaction condition. Our results indicate that these reaction parameters must be finely controlled for the enzymatic ROP reaction although some earlier studies often neglected some conditions (such as the exact water content in enzymes and solvents).

Polyester synthesis via enzymatic ring-opening polymerization (ROP) in ionic liquids

256th National Meeting (2018)

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