Abdel Baki Zaher, Dib Hanna, Sahin Tuba
College of Engineering and Technology, American University of the Middle East, Kuwait.
Polymers (Basel). 2022 May 16;14(10):2031. doi: 10.3390/polym14102031.
This review aims to cover the topic of polycarbonate synthesis via ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of cyclic carbonates. We report a wide variety of ROP-initiating systems along with their detailed mechanisms. We focus on the challenges of preparing the polymers; the precise control of the properties of the materials, including molecular weight; the compositions of the copolymers and their structural characteristics. There is no one approach that works for all scales in cyclic carbonates ROP. A green process to produce polycarbonates is a luring challenge in terms of CO utilization and the targeted domains for application. The main resolution seems to be the use of controlled incorporation of functional/reactive groups into polymer chains that can tailor the physicochemical and biological properties of the polymer matrices, producing what appears to be an unlimited field of applications. Glycerol carbonate (GC) is prepared from renewable glycerol and considered as a CO fixation agent resulting in GC compound. This family of five-membered cyclic carbonates has attracted the attention of researchers as potential monomers for the synthesis of polycarbonates (PCs). This cyclic carbonate group presents a strong alternative to Bisphenol A (BPA), which is used mainly as a monomer for the production of polycarbonate and a precursor of epoxy resins. As of December 2016, BPA is listed as a substance of very high concern (SVHC) under the REACH regulation. In 2006, Mouloungui et al. reported the synthesis and oligomerization of GCs. The importance of GCs goes beyond their carbonate ring and their physical properties (high boiling point, high flash point, low volatility, high electrical conductivity) because they also contain a hydroxyl group. The latter offers the possibility of producing oligo and/or polycarbonate compounds that have hydroxyl groups that can potentially lead to different reaction mechanisms and the production of new classes of polycarbonates with a wide range of applications.
本综述旨在涵盖通过环状碳酸酯的开环聚合（ROP）合成聚碳酸酯这一主题。我们报告了各种各样的ROP引发体系及其详细机理。我们关注聚合物制备过程中的挑战；材料性能的精确控制，包括分子量；共聚物的组成及其结构特征。在环状碳酸酯ROP中，没有一种方法适用于所有规模。就二氧化碳的利用和目标应用领域而言，生产聚碳酸酯的绿色工艺是一个诱人的挑战。主要的解决办法似乎是在聚合物链中可控地引入官能团/反应性基团，这可以调整聚合物基体的物理化学和生物学性质，从而产生一个似乎无限的应用领域。碳酸甘油酯（GC）由可再生甘油制备而成，并被视为一种二氧化碳固定剂，可生成GC化合物。这类五元环状碳酸酯作为聚碳酸酯（PC）合成的潜在单体已引起研究人员的关注。这种环状碳酸酯基团是双酚A（BPA）的有力替代品，双酚A主要用作生产聚碳酸酯的单体和环氧树脂的前体。截至2016年12月，根据《化学品注册、评估、授权和限制法规》（REACH法规），双酚A被列为高度关注物质（SVHC）。2006年，穆隆吉等人报道了碳酸甘油酯的合成与低聚反应。碳酸甘油酯的重要性不仅在于其碳酸酯环和物理性质（高沸点、高闪点、低挥发性、高电导率），还在于它们含有一个羟基。后者提供了生产含有羟基的低聚和/或聚碳酸酯化合物的可能性，这可能导致不同的反应机理，并生产出具有广泛应用的新型聚碳酸酯。
