Insights into substitution strategy towards thermodynamic and property regulation of chemically recyclable polymers.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 37268636.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-023-38916-5 and PMC identifier 10238376.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The development of chemically recyclable polymers serves as an attractive approach to address the global plastic pollution crisis. Monomer design principle is the key to achieving chemical recycling to monomer. Herein, we provide a systematic investigation to evaluate a range of substitution effects and structure-property relationships in the ɛ-caprolactone (CL) system. Thermodynamic and recyclability studies reveal that the substituent size and position could regulate their ceiling temperatures (T<sub>c</sub>). Impressively, M4 equipped with a tert-butyl group displays a T<sub>c</sub> of 241 °C. A series of spirocyclic acetal-functionalized CLs prepared by a facile two-step reaction undergo efficient ring-opening polymerization and subsequent depolymerization. The resulting polymers demonstrate various thermal properties and a transformation of the mechanical performance from brittleness to ductility. Notably, the toughness and ductility of P(M13) is comparable to the commodity plastic isotactic polypropylene. This comprehensive study is aimed to provide a guideline to the future monomer design towards chemically recyclable polymers.