Continuous production method for aromatic polymer and continuous production apparatus for aromatic polymer

A continuous production method for an aromatic polymer having an ether bond or an imide bond, the method comprising:

• (a) supplying a polymerization solvent and a reaction raw material to a continuous production apparatus including a plurality of reaction vessels in a housing chamber and a stirring shaft coupled to opposite side walls of the housing chamber;
• (b) performing a polycondensation reaction in the polymerization solvent in at least one of the reaction vessels to form a reaction mixture;
• and
• (c) stirring the reaction mixture in at least one of the reaction vessels by rotating a stirring blade around the stirring shaft, wherein the stirring blade is installed on the stirring shaft and positioned in the at last one of the reaction vessels;
• and
• (d) successively moving the reaction mixture to each of the reaction vessels, wherein a temperature in a downstream reaction vessel is the same as or higher than a temperature of an adjacent upstream reaction vessel,
• the steps (a), (b), (c), and (d) being performed in parallel,
• wherein an ether bond or an imide bond is formed by the polycondensation reaction;
• respective gas phase parts of the plurality of reaction vessels communicate with one another;
• a pressure of each of the gas phase parts is uniform;
• the polycondensation reaction is a desalting polycondensation reaction;
• the reaction vessels are configured such that at least one pair among combinations of adjacent reaction vessels is sequentially connected in the order of the highest maximum liquid surface level of a liquid that can be housed by the reaction vessels;
• the reaction mixture is moved from a reaction vessel with a higher maximum liquid surface level to a reaction vessel with a lower maximum liquid surface level due to a difference in the maximum liquid surface level;
• and
• at least one reaction vessel has a higher temperature than the adjacent upstream reaction vessel.