Polyolefin containing multi-block polymers and upcycling of mixed plastics

A significant challenge in the recycling of plastics is the separation of various polymers. Mechanical recycling represents one of the most straightforward and cost-effective approaches to mitigate the escalating issue of plastic pollution. Unfortunately, the inevitable presence of mixed plastics in the waste stream and their phase separation always result in suboptimal properties for mechanically recycled materials. Multi-block copolymers (MBCPs) compatibilization represents an efficient strategy to address this issue and for upcycling of mixed plastics. The key to the implementation of this strategy lies in the efficient syntheses and structural modifications of diverse MBCPs. Especially, very few synthetic routes have been reported for the synthesis of MBCPs containing polyolefin blocks. In this contribution, we present a cyclic-acyclic monomers metathesis polymerization (CAMMP) mediated strategy for the preparation of polyolefin containing MBCPs using commercially available or easily accessible telechelic diol polymers. These polyolefins containing MBCPs can efficiently serve as compatibilizer additives for the upcycling of mixtures of polyolefins and other plastics. The combination of great variety of telechelic diol polymers with the ease of microstructure modification during CAMMP synthesis makes this strategy attractive for future investigations and potential practical applications.