Two series of tri-block copolymers, poly(lactic acid-b-ethylene glycol) (PLA-PEG-PLA), were synthesized from l,l-lactide using stannous di-octoate as initiator and di-hydroxy terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) (Mn= 600 or 4000) as co-initiator. The chemical linkage between the PEG segment and the PLA segments was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H-NMR) and thermal analyses. The polymerization degree of PLA segments in copolymers, DP PLA, was estimated from ¹H-NMR spectra and has shown a dependence on the PEG molar mass and the relative l,l-lactide feed concentration. The physical aspect of copolymers changed according to the hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments lengths. The solubility tests revealed the amphiphilic nature of copolymers. Longer PLA segments in copolymers still presented crystallinity while the crystallization of the PEG segments was suppressed.
Polymerization; poly(lactic acid-b-ethylene glycol); lactide; PLA-PEG
