Sulfone polymer and method of making

A polyaryl ether sulfone polymer, polymer (PAES), obtained by polycondensation of a monomer mixture consisting essentially of:

• (i) more than 95% moles, with respect to the total number of moles of monomers, of at least one monohalo-monohydroxyl arylsulfone monomer having formula (I):
• wherein:
• X is a halogen selected from fluorine and chlorine;
• T is selected from the group consisting of a bond, and groups of any of formulae (A) and (B):
• wherein the linking bond 1 in formula (B) is bound to the terminal phenyl ring bearing the hydroxyl group of formula (I), while the linking bond 2 is bound to the other phenyl ring bearing the —SO2— group;
• q is zero or 1, J is a bond, or a sulfone group of formula —SO2—;
• each of R′, equal to or different from each other, is selected from the group consisting of alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, aryl, alkyloxy, thioalkyloxy, carboxylic acid, alkali or alkaline earth metal sulfonate, alkyl sulfonate, alkali or alkaline earth metal phosphonate, alkyl phosphonate, and quaternary ammonium group;
• each of j′, equal to or different from each other is zero or an integer of 1 to 4;
• (ii) from 0.01 to 5% moles, with respect to the total number of moles of monomers, of at least one aryl monomer of formula (II):
• Ar(P)z (II)
• wherein:
• z is an integer equal to or greater than 2;
• Ar is a z-valent aromatic group, comprising one or more than one mono- or polynuclear aromatic nucleus;
• P is at each occurrence either a hydroxyl group, or a halogen atom, with the provision that all groups P in formula (II) are identical, and when P is a halogen atom, the said P is bound to an aromatic ring possessing an electron-withdrawing group.