Patent GB-1131664-A (GB)
Title: Process for preparing polymeric polymercaptans
IPC: C08G69/46
Filed: 1966-08-25
Abstract: 1,131,664. Polymercaptan group containing polymers; epoxy resins. THIOKOL CHEMICAL CORP. 25 Aug., 1966 [31 Aug., 1965], No. 38255/66. Headings C3B, C3R and C3T. Polymercaptan group containing polymers of M.W. 400 to 25,000 are prepared by reacting, at elevated temperatures, a polymeric reactant material containing a plurality of gem dithioether linkages with water in the presence of a catalytically effective amount of a strong monoxidizing acid with a pKa not more than 2À5. The polymeric reactant material may be those polymers prepared by (1) the reverse of the above procedure, (2) the reaction of formaldehyde with hydrogen sulphide, and (3) the reaction of mercapto alcohols with carbonyl compounds in the presence of the above monoxidizing acids, followed by polyetherification of the product so obtained. The polymeric reactant material may additionally contain in its backbone urethane, thiourethane, ether, thioether, polysulphide and siloxyl linkages by reacting the polymers obtained in processes (1), (2) and (3) above with simple polyisocyanates or urethane prepolymers containing the relevant linkages. Suitable ratios of the number of equivalents of gem dithioether linkages/unit weight of polymeric reactant material to the number of mols. of water per unit weight of polymeric reactant material are between 0 :1 to 1 : 1. Using a ratio of 1 : 1 complete scission of the gem dithioether linkages is achieved. The non-oxidizing acids may be sulphuric, hydrochloric, phosphoric, phosphorous, pyrophosphoric, dichloroacetic, glycerophosphoric, maleic, oxalic, picric, trichloroacetic or p-toluene chlorosulphonic acids. Curing of the polymercaptans may take place by reaction with (a) oxidizing agents to form larger molecules joined by disulphide linkages, (b) polyisocyanates to form polythiourethanes, or (c) polyepoxides to form polythioether linked polymers with pendant hydroxyl groups. Suitable oxidizing agents to be used in (a) are inorganic oxides, inorganic and organic peroxides, inorganic oxidizing agents such as chromates, dichromates, chlorates, borates and nitrates and organic oxidizing agents such as nitrobenzenes, nitrotoluenes and oximes, and suitable epoxy compounds to be used in (c) are epoxidized polybutadienes, essentially linear monomeric diepoxides, bisphenol A/epichlorohydrin reaction products, cycloaliphatic group containing epoxy compounds, resorcinol diglycidyl ether type resins, epoxy novolak resins and epoxidized fatty acid resins. Examples describe the scission of (1) a poly- (gem dithioether) prepared by reacting 2- mercaptoethanol with acetaldehyde, followed by reaction with hexamethylene diisocyanate, the mercaptan group containing scission product being cured with (a) a polyepoxide, (b) tellurium dioxide, and (c) 2,4-toluene diisocyanate, (2) a copolymer containing a dimethyl polysiloxane block conjoined to diethylene gem dithioether groupings by hexamethylene diurethane bridges, the mercaptan group containing scission product being cured as in (1) and (3) a polymer as described in (2), the mercaptan group-containing scission product being cured with PbO 2 , followed by further scission, curing with a diepoxide, further scission and final curing as in (1).