Efficient and well-controlled ring opening polymerization of biobased ethylene brassylate by <i>α</i>-diimine FeCl₃ catalysts <i>via</i> a coordination-insertion mechanism

• Key Words:MOLECULAR-WEIGHT; OMEGA-PENTADECALACTONE; POLY(ETHYLENE BRASSYLATE); IMMORTAL POLYMERIZATION; EPSILON-CAPROLACTONE; DELTA-VALEROLACTONE; MACROLACTONES; (CO)POLYMERIZATION; COPOLYMERIZATION; POLYMERS
• Abstract:A highly efficient late-transition metal based catalytic system of alpha-diimine FeCl3 for well-controlled ring opening polymerization of a cheap and biobased macrolactone, ethylene brassylate (EB), is described herein. Proceeding via a coordination-insertion mechanism, such a catalytic system is capable of demonstrating unprecedented higher activities than previously reported organocatalysts or main-group metal based catalysts. Moreover, benefiting from the bulky nature of the alpha-diimine ligands, transesterification side reactions can be greatly suppressed, allowing the polymerization to proceed in a well-controlled living manner, as revealed from detailed kinetic studies. Additionally, such a catalytic system was also workable for ring opening copolymerization of EB and epsilon-caprolactone (epsilon-CL), giving the desired random copolymers with various compositions.
• Volume:52
• Issue:46
• Translation or Not:no