Ring-opening polymerization is used to prepare polyesters with precisely controlled molecular weights, molecular weight distributions, and tacticities. Herein, we report a Co/Zn catalytic system that can be activated by an electrical current to mediate efficient ring-opening polymerization of enantiopure O-carboxyanhydrides, allowing for the synthesis of isotactic functionalized polyesters with high molecular weights (>140 kDa) and narrow molecular weight distributions (M_w/M_n < 1.1). We also demonstrate that these catalysts can be used for stereoselective ring-opening polymerization of racemic O-carboxyanhydrides to synthesize syndiotactic or stereoblock copolymers with different glass transition temperatures compared with their atactic counterparts.

中文翻译：

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O-羧酸酐的立体选择性电化学开环聚合功能化聚酯

开环聚合用于制备具有精确控制的分子量、分子量分布和立构规整度的聚酯。在此，我们报道了一种 Co/Zn 催化体系，该体系可以通过电流激活以介导对映纯O-羧酸酐的有效开环聚合，从而可以合成具有高分子量 (>140 kDa) 和窄的等规官能化聚酯。分子量分布 ( M _w / M _n < 1.1)。我们还证明了这些催化剂可用于外消旋O的立体选择性开环聚合-羧酸酐合成间规或立体嵌段共聚物，其玻璃化转变温度与其无规对应物相比不同。