In an attempt to pave the way toward the substitution of petroleum-based monomers for monomers from sustainable and renewable resources, this work investigates the synthesis of a portfolio of new (meth)­acrylic monomers using terpenoids as raw materials that can be conveniently extracted from wood waste and citrus fruits. The synthetic process is based on the enzymatic catalysis of the esterification of terpenoids and is solvent-, metal-, amino-, and halogen-free, overcoming the limitations of the common esterification techniques. The effect of employing microwaves in combination with the enzyme and the effect of the acyl donor choice [(meth)­acrylic acids vs (meth)­acrylic anhydrides] were studied. The process yielded complete conversion and then high-purity monomers with a variety of structures that would allow them to substitute many of the most commonly used petrochemical (meth)­acrylic monomers.

Microwave-assisted polymerization represents an opportunity to develop efficient polymerization strategies for the synthesis of (bio)macromolecules with improved properties. The possibilities will increase tremendously if non-thermal microwave effects, i.e. effect of...