Issue 15, 2023

Closed-loop recycling of lignin-based sustainable polymers with an all-hydrocarbon backbone

Abstract

Sustainable polymers from biomass with a nonhydrolytic backbone are highly desirable because they meet performance requirements. However, their inert nature hinders chemical recycling under mild conditions. In this work, we report a series of recyclable lignin-based sustainable polymers with an all-hydrocarbon backbone showing excellent thermal stability (decomposition temperature up to 380 °C) and tunable mechanical properties. These renewable polyolefins from lignin can be depolymerized back to pristine monomers with a quantitative (>90%) recovery rate under gentle heating (50 °C) by using a Grubbs II catalyst within several minutes. These polyolefins are prepared by the ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) of cyclooctene with a trans-dioxolane ketal installed at the 5,6-positions and lignin derivatives as pendants. The additional fused ring significantly reduces the ring-strain energy of the cyclooctene monomer to ∼5.0 kcal mol−1, inducing the resulting polymer to be depolymerizable to establish a closed-loop life cycle.

Graphical abstract: Closed-loop recycling of lignin-based sustainable polymers with an all-hydrocarbon backbone

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
18 5 2023
Accepted
12 7 2023
First published
13 7 2023

Green Chem., 2023,25, 5858-5864

Closed-loop recycling of lignin-based sustainable polymers with an all-hydrocarbon backbone

Y. Hu, Q. Ran, S. Wei, C. Wang, Z. Wu, E. Xu, Z. Luo, P. Jia and Y. Sha, Green Chem., 2023, 25, 5858 DOI: 10.1039/D3GC01671D

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