Recent Advances in Organocatalytic Ring-opening Polymerization

As compared with widely used polyolefin materials, aliphatic polyesters have been primarily used in electronics, packaging, and biomedicine owing to its unique biocompatibility and degradability. At present, ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of lactone is the main method to synthesize polyesters. Two types of catalysts, including metal-based catalysts and organocatalysts, were most researched today. However, metal-based catalysts lead to polymer materials with metal residues, which limits its properties and applications. As a result, organocatalysts have received great attention. In this review, the progress of organocatalytic ring-opening polymerization in the past decades was systematically summarized. The potential challenges and development directions in this field are also discussed.

Automated summary

This review systematically summarized the progress of organocatalytic ring-opening polymerization in the past decades, and discussed the potential challenges and development directions in this field. Organocatalysts have received great attention due to the limitations of metal-based catalysts in terms of properties and applications in polymer materials.