Development of HRP-mediated enzymatic polymerization under heterogeneous conditions for the preparation of functional particles

Abstract

Enzymatic polymerization is a powerful tool for the synthesis of functional polymeric materials. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-mediated vinyl polymerization in the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and β-diketone has been successfully applied to the synthesis of functional polymer particles as follows: (i) monodisperse polymer particles were prepared by enzymatic miniemulsion polymerization using surfmer (surfactant+monomer). (ii) Polymer particles stabilized by β-diketone moieties were prepared by enzymatic emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization. (iii) A novel method of surface-initiated enzymatic graft polymerization was used to synthesize core-shell particles. These methods could offer a practical approach for the synthesis of functional polymer particles because the polymerizations can be conducted at room temperature using a mild enzymatic process. This focus review describes a novel research concerning horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-mediated enzymatic polymerization under aqueous heterogeneous conditions as follows: (i) monodisperse polymer particles were prepared by enzymatic miniemulsion polymerization using surfmer (surfactant+monomer). (ii) Polymer particles stabilized by β-diketone moieties were prepared by enzymatic emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization. (iii) A novel method of surface-initiated enzymatic graft polymerization was used to synthesize core-shell particles.