Polyaromatic compounds and method for their production

Abstract

Polyaromatic compound made by polymerizing one or more aromatic monomers, least one of the one or more aromatic monomers having the following structure: ##STR1## wherein X is selected from the group consisting of OH and NH.sub.2, Y is selected from the group consisting of a halogen, a halogen-containing group, a boron-containing group, a phosphorus-containing group, a carboxyl group, a hydroxyacid group, a carboxyacid group, an amino group, an amino acid group, an amide group, an ester group, a hydroxyl group and a sulfonic acid group, R is an alkyl, phenyl, naphthyl, hydroxyphenyl, hydroxy naphthyl or hydroxy (.alpha., .beta., .gamma.) alkyl group, and n is an integer from 0 to 12. The (R).sub.n --Y group is preferably either ortho or para to X and more preferably is para to X. The polyaromatic compound may be a homopolymer consisting of one species of aromatic monomer of formula (I), a copolymer consisting of two or more species of aromatic monomers of formula (I), or a copolymer comprising one or more species of aromatic monomer of formula (I) and one or more species of an aromatic monomer not of formula (I). Preferably, the one or more aromatic monomers are reacted with a stoichiometric amount of hydrogen peroxide in the presence of horseradish peroxidase, the reaction taking place in water or in a mixture of water and one or more polar solvents. To obtain a substantial yield, the pH of the reaction medium is preferably around or below the pK.sub.a of the functional group of the monomer(s) being polymerized.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.