Polymer Precursor
Two molecules of lactic acid can be dehydrated to lactide, a cyclic lactone. A variety of catalysts can polymerize lactide to either heterotactic or syndiotactic polylactide, which as biodegradable polyesters with valuable (inter alia) medical properties are currently attracting much attention.
Lactic acid is used also as a monomer for producing polylactic acid (PLA), which later has developed application as biodegradable plastic. This kind of plastic is a good option for substituting conventional plastic produced from petroleum oil because of low emission of carbon dioxide. The commonly used process in producing lactic acid is via fermentation, and, later, to obtain the polylactic acid, the polymerization process follows.
Read more about this topic: Lactic Acid