posted on 2023-11-27, 16:13authored byYota Chiba, Ryo Kawatani, Yasuhiro Kohsaka
To achieve a sustainable society
supported by resource circulation,
vinyl monomers that can radically polymerize and be recovered from
vinyl polymers (VPs) are desirable. However, the chemical recycling
of VPs remains challenging because of the difficulty in quantitative
and selective main-chain scission or depolymerization. In this study,
VPs of cyclic styrene derivatives, such as 3-methylene phthalide,
were investigated to be chemically recyclable. The ring-opening of
the pendant groups by saponification enhanced the steric hindrance
of the pendants, which resulted in main-chain scission and depolymerization
to the monomer precursors. Highly efficient chemical recycling was
achieved by suspending the polymer in aqueous KOH. These results facilitate
resource circulation toward achieving a sustainable society.