Amorphous high glass transition biodegradable polymers by radical polymerization

• Applicant: Professorin Dr. Seema Agarwal
• Subject Area: Polymer Materials
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 451963021

Biodegradable polymers with end-of-life options in industrial compost plants or in agricultural soil after use, could be a sustainable replacement of polyolefins used often for packaging and agricultural applications as they create maximum plastic waste. However, presently the major bottleneck is the lack of basic synthetic biodegradable materials with balance in good physical properties required during use and the complete and fast rate of biodegradation after use with unambiguous proof of bio assimilation. The present proposal aims at studying such materials with respect to their synthesis, characterization and biodegradation behaviour. Unconventional method of making polyesters by radical ring-opening polymerization of cyclic ketene acetals with vinyl monomers will be used as it offers more opportunities of controlling the material properties including microstructure by changing both the CKA and vinyl monomer structures and methods of polymerization – batch vs. semi batch processes. Emphasis will be on tuning the microstructure of the polymers for complete biodegradation and studying both stages of biodegradation in details.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants