Polyimides from complexes of benzophenonetetracarboxylic acid diesters with diamines. 5. Mechanism of thermal cyclization of H-complexes

The results of a study, by thermal mass spectrometric analysis and NMR spectroscopy, of the polycondensation of H-complexes are presented from which it is possible to propose a mechanism for the reaction. It is shown that conversion of the H-complexes into polyimides takes place through the formation of intermediate zwitterions with an amino acid bond after initial separation of methanol, following which elimination of water commences in one stage to form an imide ring. The role of theortho position of the functional groups in the acid ester during the formation of the hydrogen bond is discussed.Institute of Macromolecular Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences, 199004 St. Petersburg. Translated fromIzvestiya Akademii Nauk, Seriya Khimicheskaya, No. 11, pp. 2517–2524, November, 1992.