Molten ring-open copolymerization of L-lactide and cyclic trimethylene carbonate

✍ Scribed by Eli Ruckenstein; Yumin Yuan

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 143 KB
• Volume: 69
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0021-8995
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-4628(19980815)69:7<1429::aid-app18>3.0.co;2-o

✦ Synopsis

The biodegradable poly( L-lactide-co-trimethylene carbonate) [poly(LLAco-TMC)] was synthesized by molten ring-open copolymerization and the structure and properties of the copolymer were investigated by GPC, NMR, FTIR, DSC, and Instron testing. The copolymer with a higher LLA content had a higher initial molecular weight (M n ), but a lower final M n . In contrast, the copolymer with a higher TMC content had a lower initial M n , but its M n increased with increasing reaction time and TMC content. The glass transition temperature ( T g ), the melting temperature ( T m ) and the crystallinity of the copolymer decreased with increasing TMC content. The elongation of the copolymer significantly increased with increasing TMC content while the toughness passed through a maximum.