Ethylene-alkyne copolymers, their preparation and their use as additives to petroleum distillates

• US 4,417,038 A
• Filed: 12/04/1981
• Issued: 11/22/1983
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1980
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: BASF AG (BASF SE)
• Original Assignee: BASF AG (BASF SE)
• Inventors: Schramm, Manfred, Vogel, Hans-Henning, Schwartz, Erich, Werner, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Jr., Harry
• Application Number:
  US06/327,727
• Time in Patent Office: 718 Days
• Field of Search: 526/285
• US Class Current: 526/285
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 210/02 Ethene
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 238/00 Copolymers of compounds having one or more carbon-to-carbon triple bonds
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/195 obtained by reactions involving only carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/1955 homo- or copolymers of compounds having one or more unsaturated aliphatic radicals each having one carbon bond to carbon double bond, and at least one being terminated by an alcohol, ether, aldehyde, ketonic, ketal, acetal radical
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/1963 mono-carboxylic
• CPC Class Codes: C10L 1/1973 mono-carboxylic

Abstract

Ethylene-alkyne copolymers and ethylene-alkyne-alkene terpolymers. The copolymers and terpolymers have a number-average molecular weight, determined by vapor phase osmometry, of from 500 to 500,000 and contain, as copolymerized units,

(A) from 70 to 99 percent by weight of ethylene and

(B) an acetylenically unsaturated compound of the formula (I)

H--C.tbd.C--R.sup.1                                        I

where R¹ is (OCH₂ CH₂)_n H or CH₂ -R², n is 1-20, R² is -OH, -OCOR³ or -COOR³ and R³ is straight-chain or branched C₁ -C₁₀ -alkyl. The terpolymers contain, as copolymerized units, from 50 to 99 percent by weight of (A), from 0.5 to 30 percent by weight of (B) and, in addition, (C) from 0.5 to 49.5 percent by weight of an olefinically unsaturated ester of the formula (II) ##STR1## where R⁴ is H or CH₃, R⁵ is -OOC-R⁶ or -COOR⁶ and R⁶ is straight-chain or branched C₁ -C₁₀ -alkyl. The copolymers and terpolymers are prepared in a continuous or batchwise polymerixation system at from 150° to 350° C. under a pressure of from 500 to 3,000 bar in the presence of from 200 to 4,000 mole ppm, based on monomers, of an organic peroxide which decomposes into free radicals. The copolymers and terpolymers can be used as additives to petroleum distillates.

Claims

1. An ethylene-alkyne copolymer, useful as an additive for petroleum distillates, which has a number-average molecular weight, determined by vapor phase osmometry, of from 500 to 500,000 and which contains, as copolymerized units,

(A) from 70 to 99% by weight of ethylene and

(B) an acetylenically unsaturated compound of the general formula (I)

View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)

2. A process for the preparation of an ethylene-alkyne copolymer as in claim 1, wherein the copolymerization of ethylene with an acetylenically unsaturated compound of the formula I, is carried out in a continuous or batchwise polymerization system at from 150°

to 350°

C. under a pressure of from 500 to 3,000 bar in the presence of from 200 to 4,000 mole ppm, based on monomers, of an organic peroxide which decomposes into free radicals, in the presence or absence of oxygen and in the presence or absence of a polymerization regulator.

3. A copolymer as defined in claim 1, which has a number-average molecular weight of from 500 to 10,000.

4. A copolymer as defined in claim 1, which has a number-average molecular weight of from 1,000 to 5,000.