Biodegradability is one of the key features for reducing
the negative
environmental impact of plastic waste disposal; therefore, designing
biocompatible polymeric biomaterials with programmable life cycles
is urgently needed. Herein, deep eutectic solvent monomers (DESm)
composed of l-lactide and various lactones of different molecular
weights were formulated to obtain polyesters at low temperatures with
the aid of organocatalysts and under solventless conditions. The introduced
DESm expand the range of eutectic mixtures capable of undergoing ring-opening
polymerization (ROP) to include mixtures of l-lactide with
δ-valerolactone and δ-hexalactone. Extending the toolbox
for DESm preparation will allow for the design of polyesters with
tailored molecular weight and crystallinity, which are conducive to
programmable degradability. ROP of DESm carried out at low temperatures
and under solventless conditions holds promise for a sustainable framework
for preparing biodegradable polymers for biomedical applications.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.