Organometallics

Sumesh K. Raman, Arron C. Deacy, Leticia Pena Carrodeguas, Natalia V. Reis, Ryan W. F. Kerr, Andreas Phanopoulos, Sebastian Morton, Matthew G. Davidson, Charlotte K. Williams https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.organomet.9b00845

The copolymerization of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and epoxides is an attractive means to valorize an abundant, renewable feedstock and to produce useful polymers with reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Coupling reactions between CO₂ and epoxides yield cyclic carbonates as the thermodynamic products, but with a suitable catalyst the kinetic polycarbonate product may also be accessible. Catalyst selection, therefore, is critical to governing reaction selectivity and rates, as well as providing a means to control polymer properties such as molar mass and dispersity.