Abstract: | Novel aromatic polyimides containing tetraphenylpyrrole unit were synthesized from 3,4-bis(4-aminophenyl)-2,5-diphenylpyrrole and various aromatic tetracarboxylic dianhydrides by the usual two-step procedure that included ring-opening polyaddition and subsequent thermal cyclodehydration. These polymers had inherent viscosities in the 0.20–0.65 dL/g range and were practically amorphous as shown by the X-ray diffraction studies. All the polyimides except for polypyromellitimide were easily soluble in a wide range of organic solvents such as o-chlorophenol, pyridine, 1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidone, N,N-dimethylacetamide, and N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone at room temperature. These polyimides had high glass transition temperatures of 302–359°C and exhibited 10% weight loss at temperatures above 510°C in nitrogen. |