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Updated: Sep 19, 2025

Depolymerizable Olefinic Polymers Based on Fused-Ring Cyclooctene Monomers
Published on: December 16, 2022
Chemically recyclable polythioesters prepared by ring-opening polymerization of dithiolactone and monothiodilactone
Wenxiu Lv1,2, Maosheng Li1, Jinlong Chen1
1Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, China.
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Developing polymers that can be chemically recycled signifies a considerable prospect to polymer scientists to tackle the increasing plastic crises but is still plagued with certain limitations in architecture/performance diversity and depolymerization activity. Polythioesters synthesized through ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of cyclic thioesters monomers are captivating materials owing to the labile thioester bonds in polymer chains and the low ring strain energy of thiolactone monomers. In this brief review, the latest advancements in the ring-opening polymerization of dithiolactone and monothiodilactone monomers to prepare chemically recycled polythioesters are summarized. Moreover, the feasibility and challenges in future practical applications of chemically recyclable polythioesters derived from dithiolactone and monothiodilactone will be discussed.
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