Defined polymer architectures enabled by yttrium-mediated ring-opening polymerization of renewable lactones

Abstract

Although global plastic production exceeds 410 million tons annually, less than 0.7 % currently originates from bio-based sources. Given the finite fossil resources and the low biodegradability of conventional plastics, the development of polymers from renewable feedstocks offers considerable potential. This highlights the largely unexploited opportunities offered by renewable monomers. Ring-opening polymerization (ROP) enables the synthesis of polyesters with precise control over molar mass, polydispersity, and architecture, while reversible-deactivation radical polymerization (RDRP) techniques such as atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) provide complementary strategies for post-polymerization modification of functional polyesters. This dissertation employs aminoalkoxy bis(phenolate) yttrium complexes for the controlled ROP of lactones from renewable resources, systematically expanding the accessible monomer scope from small, strained four-membered rings to unstrained macrolactones and functional seven-membered terpene-derived lactones. In the first part, the entropy-driven ROP of the 16-membered macrolactone ω pentadecalactone (PDL) was achieved under controlled conditions, affording high-molar-mass poly(ω-pentadecalactone) (PPDL) with moderate polydispersities. Its aliphatic backbone makes PPDL a promising sustainable analogue to polyolefins. Sequential block copolymerization with the four-membered racemic β-butyrolactone (BBL) yielded semi-crystalline materials that integrate the crystalline domains of both homopolymers, enabling tunable material properties. The second part investigated the effect of substitution pattern and stereochemistry on the polymerization kinetics and mechanism of the seven-membered terpene-based (-)-menthide and (+)-carvomenthide, which differ only in the relative positions of their substituents. Kinetic analysis combined with density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that subtle stereoelectronic differences strongly impact activation parameters, propagation rates, and susceptibility to side reactions. In (-)-menthide, the isopropyl group adjacent to the reactive ester moiety introduces steric hindrance and increases the activation, whereas the reduced steric demand near the ester in (+)-carvomenthide enables faster propagation but also promotes side reactions. These findings provide valuable guidelines for the rational design of terpene-based lactones. The third part focused on trans (+)-dihydrocarvide (DHC), a seven-membered lactone bearing a pendant isopropenyl group. ROP of DHC produced amorphous poly(dihydrocarvide) (PDHC) with full retention of the double bond. Block copolymerization with semi-crystalline PPDL or syndiotactic poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) introduced crystallinity and phase separation. The pendant double bonds in PDHC were further functionalized via thiol-ene chemistry to generate ATRP macroinitiators, enabling orthogonal grafting-from polymerizations of ethyl acrylate that afforded high-density polyester-based brush architectures. Overall, the combination of yttrium-mediated ROP with orthogonal post-polymerization techniques enables the construction of renewable polyester architectures such as block and graft copolymers that integrate amorphous, semi-crystalline, and functional segments. This modular approach offers a versatile platform to tailor thermal, mechanical, and functional properties, providing new opportunities for advanced biomedical and high-performance materials.