| abstract |
A process for producing a lactic acid-based copolyester by the ring-opening copolymerization and transesterification of a lactide (A) with an aromatic polyester (B) and/or an aliphatic polyester (C) in the presence of a ring-opening polymerization catalyst (D), and a packaging material comprising the lactic acid-based copolyester obtained by the process are disclosed. According to the present invention, a lactic acid-based degradable copolyester which has a sufficiently high molecular weight and satisfactory toughness and also has suitable rigidity, pliability, and transparency according to applications can be produced. Further, a general-purpose packaging material, e.g., a sheet or film, which comprises the lactic acid-based copolyester produced by the process and is excellent in formability, degradability, and transparency can also be produced. |