Process for preparing poly(arylene sulfide) polymers using waste material
AssigneePhillips Petroleum Company
InventorsCarlton E. Ash, Jon F. Geibel
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process is provided for producing a poly(arylene sulfide) polymer which employs waste material comprising poly(arylene sulfide) polymer that is normally discarded or otherwise disposed of, wherein the waste stream is contacted with a polymerization reaction mixture under polymerization conditions. The waste material can optionally contain other components such as cyclic and linear oligomers, inorganic salts, polar organic compounds and water.
Claims20
A process for preparing a first essentially linear high molecular weight poly(arylene sulfide) polymer which comprises:
- contacting a polymerization mixture comprising:
- at least one dihaloaromatic compound,
- a sulfur source,
- at least one molecular weight modifying agent,
- and a first polar organic compound,
- with a waste material comprising:
- (a) a second poly(arylene sulfide) polymer;
- (b) cyclic oligomers of the formula
- n, where 4≦n≦15;
- (c) linear oligomers of the formula
- where 1≦p≦50, and X and Y are independently selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a phenoxy group, a hydroxy group and the salts thereof, a cyclic amide, substituted and unsubstituted amines of the formula,
- where R1 and R2 are selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms, a carboxylic acid having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms and a carboxylate having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms;
- (d) and at least one component selected from the group consisting of an alkali metal carboxylate, an alkali metal halide, water, and a second polar organic compound,
- under polymerization conditions to give said first essentially linear high molecular weight poly(arylene sulfide) polymer at an increased yield without increasing low molecular weight polymer.
A process for preparing an essentially linear high molecular weight poly(arylene sulfide) polymer which comprises:
- contacting a polymerization mixture comprising:
- at least one dihaloaromatic compound,
- a sulfur source,
- at least one molecular weight modifying agent,
- and a first polar organic compound,
- with a waste material from a previous (arylene sulfide) polymerization, said waste material comprising:
- (a) a second poly(arylene sulfide) polymer;
- (b) cyclic oligomers of the formula
- n, where4≦n≦15;
- (c) linear oligomers of the formula,
- where 1≦p≦50, and X and Y are independently selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a phenoxy group, a hydroxy group and the salts thereof, a cyclic amide, substituted and unsubstituted amines of the formula,
- where R1 and R2 are selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms, a carboxylic acid having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms and a carboxylate having from 1 to 10 carbon atoms;
- and
- (d) and at least one component selected from the group consisting of an alkali metal carboxylate, an alkali metal halide, water, and a second polar organic compound,
- under polymerization conditions, including a temperature sufficient that said essentially linear high molecular weight poly(arylene sulfide) polymer is in molten phase;
- and
- introducing a sufficient amount of a separation agent that is soluble in said polar organic compound and is not a solvent for poly(arylene sulfide) to cause phase separation between molten poly(arylene sulfide) polymer and polar organic compound and reducing the temperature of said polymerization mixture sufficiently to produce a slurry comprising said essentially linear high molecular weight poly(arylene sulfide) in particulate form in polar organic compound.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.