Monomer design strategies to create natural product-based polymer materials

In an effort towards enhancing function and sustainability, natural products have become of interest in the field of polymer chemistry. This review details the blending of chemistries developed through synthetic organic chemistry and polymer chemistry. Through synthetic organic chemical transformations, such as functional group interconversion, a protection/deprotection series, or installation of a functional group, various designs towards novel, synthetic, bio-based polymer systems are described. This review covers several classifications of natural products - oils and fatty acids, terpenes, lignin, and sugar derivatives focusing on exploring monomers prepared by one or more synthetic steps.