Aminolysis of Poly-3-Hydroxybutyrate in N,N-Dimethylformamide and 1,4-Dioxane and Formation of Functionalized Oligomers

The degradation pattern of bacterial poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) in dimethylformamide (DMF) and dioxane solutions at 100 °C assisted by ethylenediamine, 1,4-diaminobutane and monoaminoethanol was studied. When diamines were introduced into the PHB solution in DMF in the amount of 1 mol of the reagent to 5 or 10 mol of PHB monomers, a rapid decrease in the molecular weight of the polymer was observed. The initial value of the weight average molecular weight (Mw) 840 kDa had decreased by 20–30 times within the first 10–20 min of the experiment, followed by its gradual decrease to several thousand Da. When a similar molar quantity of aminoethanol was added, the molecular weight decreased slower. PHB had been degrading much slower in the dioxane solution than in DMF. By varying the number of reagents, it was possible to reach stabilization of the Mw at 1000–3000 Da when using diamines and 8000–20,000 Da using aminoethanol. 1H NMR analysis of the oligomers revealed of amino and amido groups forming in their structure. From the opposite end of the polymer chain, residues of 3-hydroxybutyric, crotonic and isocrotonic acids were formed during degradation. Differential scanning calorimetry indicated that after oligomerization there was a decrease in the melting point from 178 °C to 140–170 °C depending on the decrease in the molecular weight. The method proposed can be used for obtaining aminated PHB oligomers