Aprocess to synthesize hydroxyl-terminated polycarbonates from carbon dioxide and epoxies was originally developed a number of years ago.1 This is a fertile research area, and the reference is one of many issued patents in the field. The promise of using carbon dioxide as an inexpensive and renewable raw material to produce polymers was sufficiently attractive that Novomer, Inc. was founded to commercialize this technology. Building upon this pioneering work of Coates et al., Novomer has advanced the catalyst technology and developed a family of proprietary catalysts with improved activity and selectivity. These catalysts maximize carbon dioxide incorporation and provide polycarbonates with perfectly alternating CO2/epoxide monomer incorporation. These polymers also have low polydispersity indices. In addition to improving the performance of the resulting polymers, these catalysts allow Novomer to conduct polymerization using parts per million catalyst levels. Not only can the product be labeled “green”, but it also offers advantages as a commercial raw material that can be made using waste carbon dioxide.
Hardcoats to improve the surface properties of plastics, glass and metals are commercially available. This work examines hardcoats that can be applied to plastic and glass. They could be applied to metals, but the work has not progressed in that direction yet. Commercial hardcoats for plastic and glass generally are very low-solids formulations. They may also be cured by UV radiation.