POLY(PHENYLENETHER) UND VERFAHREN ZU IHRER HERSTELLUNG.

摘要

High mol. wt. polyphenylene ethers (PPO) are prepd. from monohydric phenols with alkyl substits. in both o-positions, opt. in the m-position but not in the p-position, by (i) oxidative coupling with O2 at 10-50 deg. C in the presence of a copper salt/organic amine complex catalyst, in a 1:1-20:1 pts. wt. ratio with an organic solvent, based on monomeric phenol, and opt. with an activator (ii) stopping the reaction (iii) removing the catalyst with chelating- and salt-forming agents (iv) stabilising the PPO by reaction of the terminal -OH gps. with epoxides of formula (I). In (I), R1, R2 = same or different, opt. contg. a further epoxide gp., alkyl, cycloalkyl, aryl, aryloxy, alkyloxy, carboxyalkyl, 3-20C alkyl substd. amine or R1 = H; R2 = one of the above gps. or R1 and R2 form part of a cycloalkyl ring. Pref. R1 = phenoxy or di-n-butylamine and R2 = H. Specifically claimed cpds. are:- N-glycidyl-N-methyl aniline; glycidyl benzoate; phenyl glycidyl ether; cyclohexyl epoxide; Bisphenol-A-digylycidyl ether or butane-1,4-diglycidyl ether.