A new copolymerization process leading to poly(propylene carbonate) with a highly enhanced yield from carbon dioxide and propylene oxide

Using excessively loaded propylene oxide (PO) as a solvent, the copolymerization of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and PO was carried out with zinc glutarate catalyst, consequently producing poly(propylene carbonate) of high molecular weight in a high yield (64–70 g polymer per gram of catalyst) never achieved before. Both the PO used as solvent and the excessively loaded CO₂ were fully recoverable, respectively, and reusable for their copolymerization, indicating that this is a clean, green polymerization process to convert CO₂ to its polycarbonate. The polymer yield was further improved by scaling up the copolymerization process. Among zinc glutarate catalysts prepared through several synthetic routes, one from zinc oxide delivered the highest yield in the copolymerization. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 1863–1876, 1999