Biodegradation of copolymers composed of optically active L‐lactide and (R)‐ or (S)‐1‐methyltrimethylene carbonate

Random copolymerizations of L ‐lactide with ( R )‐, ( S )‐, or rac ‐1‐methyltrimethylene carbonate with bis(pentamethylcyclopentadienyl) samarium‐methyl tetrahydrofuranate [(C 5 Me 5 ) 2 SmMe(THF)] as a novel initiator provided high molecular weight polymers with low polydispersities. Biodegradation of the resulting polymers with tricine and { N ‐[tris(hydroxymethyl)methyl]‐2‐aminoethane sulfonic acid (TES) buffers as well as activated sludge showed only a small weight loss, whereas the polymer with proteinase K revealed high biodegradability independent of the optical activity of 1‐methyltrimethylene carbonate.