POLYMERIZATION OF 2,6-DIMETHYLPHENOL WITH MIXED-LIGAND COPPER-COMPLEXES

Oxidative polymerization of 2,6-dimethylphenol to poly(2,6-dimethyl-1, 4-phenylene ether) (PPE) was catalyzed by copper-amine complexes which were prepared from cuprous oxide, hydrobromic acid, and amines. An un expected synergistic phenomenon was observed for the mixed n-butylamin e dibutylamine-copper complex. Under identical reaction conditions, th e polymer produced with the mixed-amine copper complex had much higher molecular weight than those produced with the single-amine copper com plexes. The best n-butylamine/dibutylamine composition for the mixed-a mine copper complex was found to be at 1:1 molar ratio, which gave the highest intrinsic viscosity and the highest PPE yield with little cha nge in 3,3',5,5'-tetramethyldiphenoquinone yield and nitrogen content. The interaction of amines in the mixed-amine copper complex was obser ved using infrared spectroscopy.