US 12,460,046 B2
Process for polymerizing lactide using a liquid catalyst formulation
Gerrit Gobius du Sart, Herwijnen (NL); Matthew Gwilym Davidson, Devizes (GB); and Strachan McCormick, Bath (GB)
Assigned to TOTALENERGIES CORBION B.V., Gorinchem (NL)
Appl. No. 17/776,333
Filed by TotalEnergies Corbion B.V., Gorinchem (NL)
PCT Filed Nov. 13, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/082045
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date May 12, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/094525, PCT Pub. Date May 20, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 19209447 (EP), filed on Nov. 15, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0403103 A1, Dec. 22, 2022
Int. Cl. C08G 63/08 (2006.01); C08G 63/82 (2006.01)
CPC C08G 63/08 (2013.01) [C08G 63/823 (2013.01)] 13 Claims
 
1. A process for polymerizing lactide comprising:
a) preparing a liquid catalyst formulation comprising a catalyst, an initiator and lactide, wherein said liquid catalyst formulation is prepared by mixing a catalyst, an initiator and lactide to form a slurry, and by heating said slurry, and
b) contacting the liquid catalyst formulation prepared in step a) with lactide, and polymerizing the lactide in the presence of the liquid catalyst formulation to form polylactide,
wherein the catalyst is a metal-coordination compound
wherein the metal is at least one of Zr or Hf, and
wherein the parent ligand of the compound corresponds to formula (I)

OG Complex Work Unit Chemistry
wherein R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, and Re are each independently selected from the group consisting of H, halogen, —NO2 and a C1-10 hydrocarbyl group that is optionally substituted by one or more substituents each independently selected from the group consisting of halogen, hydroxyl, C1-10alkyl, haloC1-10alkyl, C1-10alkoxy and haloC1-10alkoxy.