Ring-opening polymerization
Chain polymerization involving cyclic monomers / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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In polymer chemistry, ring-opening polymerization (ROP) is a form of chain-growth polymerization in which the terminus of a polymer chain attacks cyclic monomers to form a longer polymer (see figure). The reactive center can be radical, anionic or cationic. Some cyclic monomers such as norbornene or cyclooctadiene can be polymerized to high molecular weight polymers by using metal catalysts. ROP is a versatile method for the synthesis of biopolymers.
A polymerization in which a cyclic monomer yields a monomeric unit which is acyclic or contains fewer cycles than the monomer. Note: If monomer is polycyclic, the opening of a single ring is sufficient to classify the reaction as ring-opening polymerization.
Penczek S.; Moad, G. Pure Appl. Chem., 2008, 80(10), 2163-2193
Ring-opening of cyclic monomers is often driven by the relief of bond-angle strain. Thus, as is the case for other types of polymerization, the enthalpy change in ring-opening is negative.[3]