Enzymatic synthesis and polymerization of cyclic trimethylene carbonate monomer with/without methyl substituent

The direct enzymatic synthesis of a cyclic trimethylene carbonate (1,3-dioxane-2-one) monomer with/without a methyl substituent was carried out using dimethyl or diethyl carbonate and 1,3-diol with the objective of producing alipathic poly(trimethylene carbonate), a typical biodegradable synthetic plastic. The lipase-catalysed condensation of dimetyl or dietyl carbonate with aliphatic 1,3-diols using immobilized Candida antartica lipase (lipase CA) in an organic solvent at 70°C afforded the corresponding methyl-substituted and unsubstituted cyclic trimethylene carbonates. The cyclic trimethylene carbonates obtained by the reaction of dimethyl or diethyl carbonates with 1,3-propanediol and 2-methyl-1,3-propanediol were polymerized by lipase to produce the corresponding polycarbonates.