Synthesis and Characterization of a Lignin-Derived Aromatic Polycarbonate

High-performance polymers, such as polycarbonate, are typically manufactured using bisphenols derived from petroleum. The toxicity of currently employed bisphenols and concerns over long term supplies of fossil resources make biomass-derived polymer replacements an important area of study. Polycarbonate of bisphenol A (BPA-PC), polycarbonate of bisphenol F (BPF-PC), and polycarbonate of lignin-derived bisguaiacol (BG-PC) were synthesized in one-pot reactions under mild conditions in acetonitrile via reaction of the respective bisphenolic monomers with commercially available p-nitrophenyl chloroformate in the presence of 4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) and excess triethylamine (Et3N). The resultant polymers were characterized by gel permeation chromatography (GPC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The synthesized lignin-derived polycarbonate showed high thermophysical properties comparable to some current commercial polycarbonates; however, more work is still required to prove the full utility of this potential replacement polymer.