Alessandro Gandini

This perspective article examines the state of the art regarding the field of polymers from renewable resources and attempts to give a critical appraisal of the situation related to a representative number of specific materials, in terms of their interest, present degree of advancement, and prospective development within short- and medium-term projections. The selected examples include polysaccharides and their derivatives, lignin, suberin, vegetable oils, tannins, natural monomers like terpenes, and monomers derived from sugars, with particular emphasis on furan derivatives and lactic acid, bacterial cellulose, and poly(hydroxyalkanoates), ending with a brief assessment of the potential role of glycerol and ethanol as future precursors to monomers.

The last few decades have witnessed a spiralling growth of interest in polymers from renewable resources within both the scientific and industrial communities. This review attempts to illustrate this state of affairs through a panoramic overview of recent progress in the most relevant areas related to such materials, including the polymerisation of natural monomers and their derivatives, the exploitation of biopolymers, as such, or after appropriate modifications, as well as the preparation of composites and blends. Because of the sheer size and depth of the field, no attempt has been made here to provide a comprehensive coverage, emphasis being placed instead on conveying the extent and originality of contributions reported in the last few years in important domains like sugars and polysaccharides, vegetable oils, lignin, pine resin derivatives, furans, and a series of other monomers.