Oxyethylene copolymers with chloromethyl and (alkylthio)methyl or (alkylsulfonyl)methyl side groups: Syntheses and Tg/composition relationships

New classes of copolymers, poly[oxy(chloromethyl)ethylene]/poly[oxy-((alkylthio)methyl)ethylene] copolymers (CE-ATEs), poly[oxy((alkylthio)methyl)-ethylene]s (ATEs), poly[oxy(chloromethyl)ethylene]/poly[oxy((alkylsulfonyl)meth-yl)ethylene] copolymers (CE-ASEs), and poly[oxy((alkylsulfonyl)methyl)ethylene]s (ASEs) have been made for the first time. The thioether-containing polymers (CE-ATEs and ATEs) were synthesized by reacting poly[oxy(chloromethyl)ethylene] (CE, poly(epichlorohydrin)) with different amounts of sodium alkanethiolates. The sulfone-containing polymers (CE-ASEs and ASEs) were synthesized by oxidizing the CE-ATEs and ATEs using m-chloroperoxybenzoic acid. The Fox equation, a linear relationship, fit the T_g/composition data for most CE-ATEs. The T_g's of the CE-ASEs showed positive deviations from those calculated using the Fox equation. The Johnston equation, in which steric and/or polar interactions between dissimilar monomeric units are considered by using T_gAB (the T_g of the AB or BA dyad), fit the T_g/composition data for all copolymers in this study. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 36 : 495–504, 1998     

Synthesis,characterization, and thermal properties of novel arylene sulfone ether polyimides and polyamides

A new aromatic sulfone ether diamine was synthesized by nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction of 5‐amino‐1‐naphthol with bis(4‐chlorophenyl) sulfone in the presence of potassium carbonate in a polar aprotic solvent. Polycondensation reactions of the obtained diamine with pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA), benzophenonetetracarboxylic dianhydride (BTDA), and hexafluoroisopropylidene diphthalic anhydride (6FDA) resulted in preparation of thermally stable poly(sulfone ether imide)s. Poly(sulfone ether amide)s also were prepared by reaction of the diamine with terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) and isophthaloyl chloride (IPC). The prepared monomer and polymers were characterized by conventional methods. Physical and mechanical properties of polymers, including thermal stability, thermal behavior, solution viscosity, solubility behavior, and modulus, also were studied. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 38: 1487–1492, 2000     

Application of Poly(ether sulfone)-Based Membranes in Clean Energy Technology

Poly(ether sulfone) (PES) is a kind of polymer materials with excellent electrical insulation and acid/alkali stability. PES can be operated at high temperature continuously for a long time and still maintain excellent property stability in the environments with rapidly changed temperature, namely, great thermostability. Moreover, PES has low molding shrinkage, good dimensional stability and excellent film-forming characteristics. Compared with inorganic membranes, PES-based membranes have lower cost, which have received more attention and wide recognition in the field of clean energy technologies in recent years, such as flow batteries, fuel cells, water treatment, and gas separation. Therefore, this review summarizes the research status and prospect of the utilization of PES-based membranes in clean energy fields, in order to further promote their development and application.     

Pnictogen-Bridged Diphenyl Sulfones as Photoinduced Pnictogen Bond Forming Emission Motifs

In this study, pnictogen (Pn)-bridged diphenyl sulfones were synthesized as motifs for photoinduced dynamic rearrangement. The newly synthesized sulfones exhibited dual fluorescence at 298 K. Density functional theory calculations revealed that the longer-wavelength fluorescence was derived from the geometries after structural relaxation through photo-driven pnictogen bond formation between the O atom lone pair of the sulfonyl moiety and the antibonding orbital of the Pn−C bond. This is the first report on emission dynamics driven by pnictogen bond formation upon photoexcitation.     

Sulfonated multiblock copoly(ether sulfone)s as membrane materials for fuel cell applications

Arylene ether multiblock copolymers of the (AB)_n-type with various degrees of sulfonation have been prepared by a two-step polycondensation procedure. Multiblock copolymers in high yields and of high molecular weights were obtained. For comparison random copolymers with the same overall composition were synthesized. The theoretical ion-exchange capacities (IEC) of the materials were ranging from 0.50 mmol/g to 1.25 mmol/g. The water-uptake of the multiblock copolymers showed a linear dependency from the IEC and was increasing with increasing IEC. No differences were observed between random and block copolymers. Furthermore, the hydrolytic stability of aromatic sulfonic acid groups was investigated in this study. Aromatic sulfonic acids, having additional electron donating groups, especially in ortho- or para-position to the sulfonic acid group are sensitive to hydrolytic desulfonation. On the other hand electron-withdrawing groups in meta-position showed a stabilizing effect.