Degradable Polyketone Thermoplastic Elastomers with Biomass Sourced Composition

Polyolefin elastomers (POEs) serve as versatile materials bridging rubber and plastic properties across a variety of industrial processes, but their environmental persistence stemming from inert hydrocarbon composition raises ecological concerns. Here, we present a sustainable synthesis of degradable thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) through the carbonylative polymerization of ethylene and biomass-derived polar monomers (PMs). A cost-effective and scalable nickel catalyst has overcome the dual poison to metal center resulted from polar acid or ester motif and CO, enabling the synthesis of high-molecular-weight polyketone materials with moderate strain recovery (SR) values ranging from 27% to 61%. The resulting polyketones exhibit high melting temperature (109 °C-244 °C) and tensile strength (14.9-41.6 MPa), corresponding to thermally resistant TPEs. This study demonstrates one type of high-performance TPEs having biomass sourced composition that combine industrial durability with photodegradability.