Controlled Metathetic Depolymerization of Natural Rubber in Ionic Liquids: From Waste Tires to Telechelic Polyisoprene Oligomers

Ali Mouawia (1) , Arnaud Nourry (2) , Annie-Claude Gaumont (1) , Jean-François Pilard (2) , Isabelle Dez (1)

1 LCMT - Laboratoire de chimie moléculaire et thioorganique
2 IMMM - Institut des Molécules et Matériaux du Mans

A controlled degradation process enabling Natural Rubber (NR) depolymerization and using the olefin metathesis reaction in ionic liquid medium is reported. Using trihexyl-(tetradecyl)phosphonium chloride (Cyphos101) and N,N-dioctylimidazolium bromide (C8C8ImBr), low-dispersity telechelic polymers are produced. With N,N-dioctylimidazolium bromide (C8C8ImBr), the degradation process could be performed for five consecutive cycles with excellent control. This degradation process was successfully applied to waste tires.

Mots clés: polyisoprene; cross-metathesis; controlled depolymerization; functional polymers; ionic liquid; catalyst recycling

Domaines: Polymères

Ali Mouawia, Arnaud Nourry, Annie-Claude Gaumont, Jean-François Pilard, Isabelle Dez. Controlled Metathetic Depolymerization of Natural Rubber in Ionic Liquids: From Waste Tires to Telechelic Polyisoprene Oligomers. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2017, 5 (1), pp.696 - 700. ⟨10.1021/acssuschemeng.6b01777⟩. ⟨hal-01698464⟩