POLYMERIZATION WITH ENHANCED GLYCOL ETHER FORMATION

• US 20130129951A1
• Filed: 12/28/2012
• Published: 05/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (Corteva, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hasty, Noel M., Stancik, Edward J.
• Application Number:
  US13/729,787
• Publication Number:
  US 20130129951A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 428/35.7
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 1/00 Layered products having a non-planar shape
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 63/672 Dicarboxylic acids and dihydroxy compounds
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 63/6886 Dicarboxylic acids and dihydroxy compounds
• CPC Class Codes: C08G 63/85 Germanium, tin, lead, arsenic, antimony, bismuth, titanium, zirconium, hafnium, vanadium, niobium, tantalum, or compounds thereof C08G63/823 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2666/26 Natural polymers, natural resins or derivatives thereof according to C08L1/00 - C08L5/00, C08L89/00, C08L93/00, C08L97/00 or C08L99/00
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 3/02 Starch; Degradation products thereof, e.g. dextrin
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 67/00 Compositions of polyesters obtained by reactions forming a carboxylic ester link in the main chain of polyester-amides C08L77/12; of polyester-imides C08L79/08; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 67/025 containing polyether sequences
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/1352 Polymer or resin containing [i.e., natural or synthetic]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/1397 Single layer [continuous layer]

Abstract

The processes disclosed herein provide methods for dehydrating diols such that dimers of the diols are formed and incorporated into polyesters during polycondensation. Control over this phenomenon provides unique polymer compositions with a range of thermo-mechanical properties, crystallinity, bio-content and biodegradability. Generation of a wide range of properties allows development of polymers that can be used for a wide range of applications.

Claims

1. A blend comprising:

an aliphatic-aromatic copolyetherester comprising an acid component and a glycol component;

wherein the acid component comprises;

a. about 90 to 10 mole percent of an aromatic dicarboxylic acid component based on 100 mole percent total acid component; and

b. about 10 to 90 mole percent of an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid component based on 100 mole percent of total acid component; and

wherein the glycol component consists essentially of;

a. about 99.8 to 0.2 mole percent of a single glycol component based on 100 mole percent total glycol component; and

b. about 0.2 to 99.8 mole percent of a dialkylene glycol component based on 100 mole percent total glycol component;

and at least one other polymer.

2. The blend of claim 1 wherein the other polymer is a natural polymer.

3. The blend of claim 2 wherein the natural polymer is a starch.

4. A shaped article formed from the blend of claim 1.

5. A shaped article of claim 4 selected from the group consisting of films, sheets, fibers, melt blown containers, molded parts, and foamed parts.

10. The process of claim 6 or 7, wherein the polycondensation is continued until a desired melt viscosity of the aliphatic-aromatic copolyetherester is achieved. 16. The aliphatic-aromatic copolyetherester of claim 1 wherein the aliphatic dicarboxylic acid component is selected from the group consisting of succinic acid, azelaic acid, sebacic acid, and brassylic acid.

6. A process for making an aliphatic-aromatic copolyetherester, comprising:

a. combining one or more dicarboxylic acid monomers or diester derivatives thereof with a diol in the presence of an ester interchange catalyst to form a first reaction mixture of an ester interchange reaction;

b. heating the first reaction mixture with mixing to a temperature between about 200 degrees C. and about 260 degrees C., whereby volatile products of the ester interchange reaction are distilled off, to form a second reaction mixture; and

c. polycondensing the second reaction mixture with stirring at a temperature between about 240 degrees C. and 260 degrees C. under vacuum to form the aliphatic-aromatic copolyetherester.

7. The process of claim 6, wherein the diol consists essentially of 100 mole percent of a single glycol component based on 100 mole percent total glycol component.

8. The process of claim 6 or 7, wherein the diol is added in an excess of between about 10% and 100% relative to that needed to provide equimolar proportions of hydroxyl moieties and carboxylic acid moieties or ester-forming derivatives thereof to the reaction vessel.

9. The process of claim 6 or 7, wherein the ester interchange catalyst is a titanium alkoxide used in an amount of about 20 to 200 parts titanium per million parts polymer.