Chemically Recyclable Thermoplastic Polyurethane Elastomers via a Cascade Ring-Opening and Step-Growth Polymerization Strategy from Bio-renewable δ-Caprolactone

It is highly desirable to develop chemically recyclable polymers to address the challenge in establishing a sustainable circular polymer economy. Despite the mass production and widespread applications, there are limited reported examples for the polyurethanes capable of chemical recycling to monomers with high efficiency and purity. In this contribution, we report the living/controlled ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of bio-renewable delta-caprolactone (delta CL) at room temperature in bulk using an organobase in combination with urea as a catalyst. The telechelic P delta CL diol precursor with well-defined terminal groups can be prepared using catalyst loading as low as 0.05 mol %. A one-pot strategy by cascade ROP of delta CL and step-growth polymerization of P delta CL diol precursors with diisocyanate under solvent-free conditions produced thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers with excellent elastic recovery, tensile strength, ultimate elongation, and low residue strain. Remarkably, the polyurethanes can be chemically recycled to recover delta CL with high purity and excellent yield (similar to 99%) by simple thermolysis.

Automated summary

This study reports a method of living/controlled ring-opening polymerization of bio-renewable polymers using an organobase and urea as catalysts at room temperature. Thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers with excellent properties were prepared using a one-pot strategy, and these polymers can be chemically recycled to recover monomers with high purity through simple thermolysis.