POLY 347 |
| Research on enzymes in organic synthesis has focused on enantioselective processes because of the high value of chiral pharmaceuticals. However, the world production of monomers and polymers reaches over 150 million t/a – an amount several orders higher than chiral products. Enzymatic processes are currently gaining access to this business by offering mild reaction conditions combined with excellent chemo- and regioselectivity. Therefore it is worthwhile to have a closer look into the area of enzymes in polymer science. Many attractive polymers are not easily available with traditional chemical procedures. High effort, low yield and insufficient selectivity are typical with the consequence of high costs. On the other hand, some of these attractive polymers can be synthesized by enzyme-catalyzed conversions. In general, enzyme-catalyzed modifications of synthetic polymers or monomers facilitate the creation and production of polymers with new functional groups and assist in the development of new industrial applications and markets. In this presentation we will outline recent results of our research using enzymes for the production of novel acrylic monomers and polymers.
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Biocatalysis in Polymer Science
8:30 AM-11:50 AM, Tuesday, 12 September 2006 San Francisco Marriott -- Salon 12/13, Oral
Division of Polymer Chemistry |