Synthesis of polycarbonates and polyesters via tetraalkylammonium salt-catalyzed ring-opening polymerization

Abstract Tetraalkylammonium salt was found to be an effective catalyst for the ring-opening polymerization of cyclic carbonates and cyclic esters, yielding aliphatic polycarbonates and polyesters with narrow dispersities. An important feature of this catalytic system is its tunable catalytic ability, which was achieved by altering the alkyl substrates and counter anions. The catalytic mechanism was studied by 1H NMR spectroscopy.