Stereocontrolled lactide polymerisation determined by the nuclearity of the yttrium initiator

摘要

Two very rapid yttrium initiators for lactide polymerisation are reported; the nuclearity (monomer vs. dimer) of the initiator controls the stereochemistry of the polylactide produced.rnLactide (LA) ring opening polymerisation (ROP) to yield polylactide (PLA) is attracting considerable attention as a sustainable route to a degradable and compostable polymer. The crystallinity of PLA affects many important properties including melting temperature, rheological characteristics and degradation rate; the crystallinity is determined by the PLA's stereochemical composition (tacticity).