Bulk solvent‐free melt ring‐opening polymerization of L‐lactide catalyzed by Cu(II) and Cu(II)–Nd(III) complexes of the Salen‐type Schiff‐base ligand

Abstract A monometallic (Cu 2+ , 1) and a bimetallic (Cu 2+ Nd 3+ , 2) Salen‐type Schiff‐base complexes with different reactive species, could efficiently catalyze the bulk solvent‐free melt ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of L ‐lactide. Especially for the bimetallic complex 2, the involvement of rare earth ion was important and influential to the catalytic behaviors. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.