Advancing Bio-based Polymer Manufacturing through Catalyst Innovation
The demand for bio-based alternatives to petrochemical-derived plastics has increased rapidly over recent decades. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA), with a global market size of $1.9 billion (2025), is the most widely commercialised of these alternative materials and has a variety of applications in consumer goods and food-contact environments. Bulk PLA production relies on highly efficient catalysts that can operate under demanding industrial conditions while meeting stringent regulatory limits on residual metal content.
While a vast number of metal-based catalyst systems reported in academic literature show high activity for bulk lactide ring-opening polymerisation at temperatures <100°C, relatively few of those are applicable under the high temperature, low catalyst loadings, and impurity-tolerant conditions required in an industrial system. Improving catalyst performance is therefore a critical manufacturing challenge, and the development of effective catalytic systems enabling faster rates, lower catalyst loadings and more sustainable processing routes remains a high priority.
Researchers at the University of Bath in collaboration with TotalEnergies Corbion have developed and scaled up promising rare earth-based systems into an industrially relevant environment, examining lanthanum- and yttrium-based ammonium tris(phenolate) catalysts under solvent-free conditions at temperatures up to 180 °C and 1 kg scale using commercial-grade lactide supplied by TotalEnergies Corbion. The research demonstrated that both catalyst systems delivered high activity (TOF up to 153 min-1), good control over polymer synthesis (Mn ~ 40 kg mol-1, ÐM = 1.44) and sufficient thermal stability for limited commercial melt-processing operations without employing exogenous stabilisers (Td > 270 °C), proving to be robust, scalable and credible candidates for industrial deployment. The work provides valuable insight into catalyst behaviour under real production conditions and strengthens the pathway towards more efficient, lower-impact manufacturing of renewable and bio-based plastics.
As highlighted by Dr Gerrit Gobius du Sart of TotalEnergies Corbion, "Collaborative research like this is essential to accelerating the transition to renewable materials. Combining world-leading academic expertise with industrial manufacturing knowledge helps us identify new catalyst technologies with genuine potential to improve the efficiency and sustainability of PLA production."
Read more on the research here: https://doi.org/10.103 9/d6py00368k