Synthesis and characterization of novel poly(sulfone siloxane)s with good solubility and recyclability based on siloxane units

Abstract

To reduce the pressing environmental concerns and negative environmental impact of non-recyclable materials, recyclable polymers pose promising and useful solutions. In this work, recyclable poly(sulfone siloxane)s were synthesized by the introduction of siloxane units into the main chain of aliphatic polysulfones via ring-opening polymerization of three types of sulfone-containing cyclosiloxane monomers with different lengths of alkyl segments. The results of wide-angle X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the prepared polymers were amorphous. Thermal properties of the recyclable poly(sulfone siloxane)s were further investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis. Moreover, poly(sulfone siloxane)s were selectively depolymerized into the initial cyclic monomers using KHSO₄ in an aqueous tetrahydrofuran solution at room temperature, suggesting the recyclability of the polymers. This work may provide a simple and useful strategy to design novel poly(sulfone siloxane)s with good solubility and recyclability.