Poly(carbonate ester)s based on units of 6-hydroxyhexanoic acid and glycerol

The synthesis of biodegradable copolymers based on the units of 6-Hydroxyhexanoic acid and glycerol is presented. ε-Caprolactone was copolymerized with 5-benzyloxy-1,3- dioxan-2-one to form a copolymer that afforded a secondary hydroxyl pendant side groups with the capacity for subsequent functionalization after the removal of the benzyl side chains from the glycerol carbonate units via a mild hydrogenolysis reaction. Copolymers were synthesized from the varying mole ratios of the two monomers, ε-Caprolactone and 5-benzyloxy-1,3-dioxan-2-one, and molecular weight measurements were obtained using size exclusion chromatography and thermal data was recorded using differential scanning calorimetry. The relative mole fractions of the monomers in the resulting co-polymers were determined using 1H NMR analysis. The results show that the copolymers possess a great glass transition temperature and a mean particle diameter of 125 nm with a narrow polydispersity index.