Advancing the material performance of chemically recyclable polythioesters via copolymerization

Developing new chemically recyclable polymers provides an opportunity for establishing a circular plastic economy. However, it is still challenging to reconcile both polymer recyclability and material properties. Herein, we aimed to exploit copolymerization of 3-methyl-dithian-2-one (Me-DTO) and thiovalerolactone (TVL) to access chemically recyclable polythioesters with high-performance material properties. Adjusting the copolymer compositions allowed to modulate the thermal and mechanical properties of the resulting copolymers extensively. Ultimately, polyolefin-like mechanical properties was achieved for P[(Me-DTO)100-co-(TVL)900] (σB = 33.87 ± 4.79MPa and εB = 638 % ± 112 %). These copolymers were capable of depolymerizing into their monomers in solution or bulk efficiently with high yields of >95 %, thus establishing their circular life cycle.