Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: Polyurethane (PU) is a structurally complex polymer whose hard aromatic and soft aliphatic segments define its materials properties. The urethane linkers connecting these segments provide stability and hydrolysis resistance but make end-of-life chemical processing challenging. Electrodegradation provides a mild, scalable, and efficient approach to polymer degradation that has been used to oxidatively or reductively cleave specific linkers or functional groups. Here, we report the sequential direct electrodegradation of the multiple segments within polyurethane. We chose a commercial polyurethane with a diaromatic methylene-bridged hard segment and ether and polyester soft segments, and characterized its dissolution and electrochemical properties. We then measured polymer degradation via size exclusion chromatography for different reaction conditions and determined that only an oligomeric polyester product remained. We characterized reaction intermediates of the polymer and representative model compounds to determine that oxidation begins at the electron-rich hard segment methylene bridge, followed by the electron-rich ether soft segment, and finally resulted in the release of the electron-poor polyester soft segment as the final product. This work establishes that a complex polymer can be sequentially electrodegraded based on electrochemical properties of the individual segments.
Source: ChemRxiv
Authors: Zahra Ansarian, Rebecca S. Sherbo
Institution: Northeastern University
Language: English
Subfield: Polymers and Plastics
Field: Materials Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7204934255