Magnesium and zinc alkoxides and aryloxides supported by commercially available ligands as promoters of chemical transformations of lactic acid derivatives to industrially important fine chemicals

Autor: Piotr Sobota, Rafał Petrus
Rok vydání: 2019
Předmět:
Zdroj: Coordination Chemistry Reviews. 396:72-88
ISSN: 0010-8545
Popis: The chemical transformation of lactic acid derivatives to industrially important fine chemicals is crucial for the development of new techniques in the medical, cosmetics, and food sectors. Much research has been devoted to the preparation of polylactides (PLAs), which are promising biodegradable plastics and have numerous practical applications. This review focuses on the synthesis, reactivity, and structural chemistry of magnesium and zinc alkoxide/aryloxide compounds and their catalytic activities in the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) or alcoholysis of l -lactide. Magnesium and zinc initiators supported by the readily available alkoxide/aryloxide ligands, which are used industrially as drugs, fungicides, disinfectants, fragrances, and flavors, are reported. The molecular structures of the selected initiators are discussed with an emphasis on how the kind of the central core arrangement and metal-bonded ligands affect polymerization and the physicochemical properties of the obtained polyesters. The use of ROP for the preparation of PLA-based functional materials such as polymer–drug or polymer–fungicide conjugates is also described. Finally, the concept of chemical recycling of postconsumer PLA resins by alcoholysis to alkyl lactates, which can be used as green solvents, is also discussed.
Databáze: OpenAIRE