Abstract
Enzymatic oxidative polymerizations of phenols afforded a new class of polyphenols. Controls of molecular weight, solubility, and shape have been achieved by selecting appropriate reaction conditions. The enzymatic production process of the polyphenols was extended to syntheses of crosslinkable polyphenols. Peroxidase-catalyzed polymerization of bisphenol-A produced a soluble polymer, which became insoluble by thermal treatment. The polymerization of a phenol derivative having a methacryloyl group proceeded chemoselectively to give the polymer having the methacryloyl group in the side chain. The resulting polymer was subjected to thermal and photochemical curings. Enzymatically synthesized poly (cardanol) was crosslinked in the presence of cobalt naphthenate.
