Patent ID: 8791187

Claim:
A process for the manufacture of a polyester polymer, comprising: polyesterifying a monomer mixture comprising at least one diol and at least one alkylene terephthalate to form a polyesterified melt; polycondensing the polyesterified melt in the absence of titanium catalysts and in the presence of aluminum atoms and at least one of an alkaline earth metal atom, an alkaline earth metal compound, an alkali metal atom, and an alkali metal compound, to form the polyester polymer; and before, during, or after the polycondensing, adding particles to the polyesterified melt, the polyester polymer or its reaction precursors, to obtain a composition, wherein the particles comprise titanium, zirconium, vanadium, niobium, hafnium, tantalum, chromium, tungsten, molybdenum, iron, or nickel atoms or combinations thereof, and adding phosphorous atoms to the polyesterified melt after satisfaction of at least one condition selected from the group consisting of: a) the polyester melt reaches an It.V. of at least 0.50 dL/g; b) releasing vacuum during polycondensation if vacuum is applied; c) at a location near or at an end of a final reactor or between the final reactor and before a cutter; d) following at least 75% of a polycondensation time; e) the It.V. of the polyester melt is within 0.03 dl/g of the final It.V. exiting a melt phase process; and f) at a point within 10 minutes of less of solidifying the polyester melt.