Synthetic resins or natural rubbers -- part of the class 520 ser – Synthetic resins – Mixing of two or more solid polymers; mixing of solid...
Patent
1995-02-02
1996-06-04
Hamilton, III, Thomas
Synthetic resins or natural rubbers -- part of the class 520 ser
Synthetic resins
Mixing of two or more solid polymers; mixing of solid...
525 66, 525 68, 525133, C08L 7112, C08L 7700
Patent
active
055233600
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a process for the modification of polyphenylene ether resin compositions in the presence of a citraconimide compound, to the use of said citraconimide compound in the modification of said resin composition, to the resin composition modified in accordance with the present process and to articles comprising the modified resin composition. The primary advantage of the process of the present invention is the improvement of the melt-flow properties of the resin compositions.
Polyphenylene ether resins are high performance engineering thermoplastics having relatively high melt viscosities and melting points. They are useful for many commercial applications requiring high temperature resistance and can be formed into films, fibers and molded articles. However, the art has recognized that polyphenylene ether resins have a major drawback. Because of the high melt viscosity and melting point of the resins, they require a high molding temperature and molding pressure. This leads to difficulties in the melt processing. There have been, therefore, attempts to improve the melt-flow properties of these resins, either alone or in compositions.
For example, European patent application EP 0 257 486 discloses the use of maleimides in a process to improve the flow properties of polyphenylene ether resins. European patent application EP 0 121 974 discloses the use of maleimides to suppress the increase of the molecular weight of polyphenylene ether resins under extrusion conditions. The examples in the specification show a decrease in the melt-viscosity of the polyphenylene ether resin, when modified. Also Chiba et al., Int. Pol. Sci. Techn., vol. 16, No. 3, 1989, pp. 25-30, discloses that maleimide influences the melt-flow properties of the PPO. However, according to this publication, maleimide does not undergo a graft reaction with PPO during the melt-mixing process.
According to the present invention there is provided a process for the modification of a polyphenylene ether resin composition, characterized by the step of reacting the polyphenylene ether resin composition at a temperature above the melting point and below the degradation point of said resin composition with an effective amount of a citraconimide compound to reduce significantly the melt viscosity of said resin composition, said citraconimide compound being represented by the formula (I): ##STR2## wherein X is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C.sub.1 -C.sub.18 alkyl groups, C.sub.2 -C.sub.18 alkenyl groups, C.sub.2 -C.sub.18 alkynyl groups, C.sub.3 -C.sub.18 cycloalkyl groups, C.sub.3 -C.sub.18 cycloalkenyl groups, C.sub.3 -C.sub.18 cycloalkynyl groups, C.sub.6 -C.sub.18 aryl groups, C.sub.7 -C.sub.30 aralkyl groups, C.sub.7 -C.sub.30 alkaryl groups, and C.sub.7 -C.sub.30 alkenaryl groups, all of which may be linear or branched and unsubstituted or substituted with one or more amino, carboxy, cyano, halogens, esters, oxiranes, ethers, nitro, hydroxy and alkoxy groups. The use of said citraconimide compounds results in an improvement of the melt-flow properties of modified polyphenylene ether resin compositions when compared with unmodified polyphenylene ether resin compositions and polyphenylene ether resin compositions modified with the modifiers known in the art.
A second advantage of the modification process of the present invention is the introduction of functional groups in polyphenylene ether resin compositions by modification with a functional group-containing citraconimide compound.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,654,405 discloses the carboxylation of polyphenylene ether resins by melt-processing the resin with ethylenic unsaturated compounds containing a carboxylic acid group. Examples of such compounds include maleic anhydride, itaconic anhydride, glutonic anhydride, citraconic anhydride, tetrahydrophthalic anhydride, or the like, as well as the carboxylic acid, ester, amide and imide analogs thereof, i.e. maleic acid, itaconic acid, fumaric acid, dimethylmaleate, maleimide, tetrahydrophthalimide and the like. Maleic
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Hope Peter
Jelenic Jernej
Talma Auke G.
Akzo Nobel N. V.
Hamilton, III Thomas
Mancini Ralph J.
Morris Louis A.
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