Zwitterionic titanoxanes {Cp[η5-C5H4B(C6F5)3]Ti}2O and {(η5-iPrC5H4)[η5-1,3-iPrC5H3B(C6F5)3]Ti}2O as catalysts for cationic ring-opening polymerization

Catalytic applications of zwitterionic transition metal compounds

This frontiers article highlights recent developments on the application of transition metal-based zwitterionic complexes in catalysis. Recent applications of selected zwitterionic catalysts in polymerization reactions, including the carbonylative polymerization of cyclic ethers, carbon-carbon coupling reactions, the asymmetric hydrogenation of unfunctionalized olefins, and the hydrofunctionalization of alkenes are reviewed. In addition, advances in the field of hydrogenation/dehydrogenation reactions related to energy applications, including the hydrogenation of CO₂ and the dehydrogenation of formic acid and N-heterocycles, the functionalization of CO₂ with amines and hydrosilanes, and the valorization of polyfunctional bio-based feedstocks, such as the dehygrogenation of glycerol to lactic acid or the reduction of levulinic acid into γ-valerolactone, are also described.

Poly(4-Hydroxybutyrate): Current State and Perspectives

By the end of 1980s, for the first time polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) copolymers with incorporated 4-hydroxybutyrate (4HB) units were produced in the bacterium Cupriavidus necator (formally Ralstonia eutropha) from structurally related carbon sources. After that, production of PHA copolymers composed of 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) and 4HB [P(3HB-co-4HB)] was demonstrated in diverse wild-type bacteria. The P4HB homopolymer, however, was hardly synthesized because existing bacterial metabolism on 4HB precursors also generate and incorporate 3HB. The resulting material assumes the properties of thermoplastics and elastomers depending on the 4HB fraction in the copolyester. Given the fact that P4HB is biodegradable and yield 4HB, which is a normal compound in the human body and proven to be biocompatible, P4HB has become a prospective material for medical applications, which is the only FDA approved PHA for medical applications since 2007. Different from other materials used in similar applications, high molecular weight P4HB cannot be produced via chemical synthesis. Thus, aiming at the commercial production of this type of PHA, genetic engineering was extensively applied resulting in various production strains, with the ability to convert unrelated carbon sources (e.g., sugars) to 4HB, and capable of producing homopolymeric P4HB. In 2001, Metabolix Inc. filed a patent concerning genetically modified and stable organisms, e.g., Escherichia coli, producing P4HB and copolymers from inexpensive carbon sources. The patent is currently hold by Tepha Inc., the only worldwide producer of commercial P4HB. To date, numerous patents on various applications of P4HB in the medical field have been filed. This review will comprehensively cover the historical evolution and the most recent publications on P4HB biosynthesis, material properties, and industrial and medical applications. Finally, perspectives for the research and commercialization of P4HB will be presented.

Establishing α-bromo-γ-butyrolactone as a platform for synthesis of functional aliphatic polyesters – bridging the gap between ROP and SET-LRP

Utilizing α-bromo-γ-butyrolactone (αBrγBL) as a comonomer with ε-caprolactone (εCL) or l-lactide (LLA) produces copolymers with active and available grafting sites, e.g., for SET-LRP, where the choice of the grafting monomers is limited only by one's imagination.

Chemosynthesis of bioresorbable poly(γ-butyrolactone) by ring-opening polymerisation: a review

Recent advances in the synthesis of poly(gamma-butyrolactone) have yielded homopolymers of up to 50,000 Mw from the low-cost monomer gamma-butyrolactone. This monomer has for the better part of a century been thought impossible to polymerise. Poly(gamma-butyrolactone) displays properties that are ideal for tissue-engineering applications and the bacterially derived equivalent, poly(4-hydroxybutyrate) (P4HB), has been evaluated for such uses. The glass transition temperature (-48 to -51 degrees C), melting point (53-60 degrees C), tensile strength (50 MPa), Young's modulus (70 MPa) and elongation at break (1000%) of P4HB make it a very useful biomaterial. Poly(gamma-butyrolactone) degrades to give gamma-hydroxybutyric acid which is a naturally occurring metabolite in the body and it has been shown to be bioresorbable. Investigation into the synthesis of poly(gamma-butyrolactone) has recently produced homo-oligomeric diols 400-1000 Mw that are suitable for reacting with diisocyanates to form polyurethanes. Biodegradable polyurethanes made from diols of polyglycolide (PGA) and poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) have the disadvantage of high glass transition and slow degradation, respectively. Poly(gamma-butyrolactone) can be thought of as being the missing link in the biodegradable polyester family immediately between PGA and PCL and displaying intermediate properties.