Preparation of polyether polymers using bisphenol hydrate as intermediate
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorJohn Christopher Schmidhauser
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Abstract
Aromatic polyether polymers, illustrated by polyethersulfones, polyetherketones and polyetherimides, are prepared by a phase transfer catalyzed reaction between a hydrate of a salt of a dihydroxyaromatic compound and a substituted aromatic compound such as bis(4-hydroxyphenyl) sulfone, bis(4-hydroxyphenyl) ketone or 1,3-bis[N-(4-chlorophthalimido)]benzene. Isolation of the hydrate and its conversion to the anhydrous salt prior to the polymerization reaction affords a polymer of higher molecular weight than other methods of preparing the anhydrous salt.
Claims16
A method for preparing an aromatic polyetherimide which comprises:
- neutralizing a dihydroxyaromatic compound with an alkali metal hydroxide in an aqueous medium, removing water to form a hydrate of the bis-alkali metal salt of said dihydroxyaromatic compound, and isolating said hydrate in crystalline form;
- converting said hydrate to the corresponding anhydrous alkali metal salt;
- and
- contacting, in a non-polar solvent and at a temperature in the range of about 125.degree.-250.degree. C., said anhydrous salt with at least one substituted aromatic compound of the formula
- Z(A.sup.1 --X.sup.1).sub.2, (I)
- wherein:
- Z is an activating radical,
- A.sup.1 --Z--A.sup.1 -- is a bisimide radical of the formula ##STR5## wherein R.sup.1 is a C.sub.6-20 divalent aromatic hydrocarbon or halogenated hydrocarbon radical, a C.sub.2-20 alkylene or cycloalkylene radical, a C.sub.2-8 bis(alkylene-terminated) polydiorganosiloxane radical or a divalent radical of the formula ##STR6## in which Q is --C.sub.2 H.sub.4 --, --O--, --CO--, --SO.sub.2 --, --C(CF.sub.3).sub.2 -- or a covalent bond;
- and
- X.sup.1 is fluoro, chloro, bromo or nitro,
- in the presence of a catalytically active amount of a phase transfer catalyst which is substantially stable at the temperatures employed.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.