Victrex

PES repeat unit stmcture can alternatively be drawn as Victrex polyethersulfone [25667 2-9]. 

ICI Advanced Materials Victrex p olye there therketone... 

Union Carbide introduced the first commercial polyarylsulfone resin, Udel, in 1966 and later introduced Radel polyarylsulfone. The business and patents rights were acquired by Amoco Corp. in 1986. Other polysulfone products have been marketed by BASF and ICl (Victrex PES) the latter aimounced in 1991 it was withdrawing from the business. 

Amoco Performance Products (Atlanta, Ga.), is the sole supplier of polysulfone, Udel, polyarylsulfone, Radel A, and polyphenylsulfone, Radel R. ICI Advanced Materials (Exton, Pa.), is the sole domestic supplier of the polyethersulfone, Victrex PES, but announced ia 1991 it was withdrawing from the business. 

Polyetheretherketone Resin (PEEK). The resia was commercialized as Victrex PEEK by Imperial Chemical Industries, Ltd. (ICl) ia the late 1970s and by Amoco Chemicals Corp. ia the middle 1980s under the trade name Kadel. It is produced by both companies ia the United States. Kadel is beheved made by the displacement reaction of 4,4 -difluorodiphenyl ketone by the potassium salt of hydroquinone ... 

Property ASTM method Victrex PEEK resia Reiaforced Victrex PEEK 30% glass 30% carboa ... 

The first commercial polymer Table 21.3, II) was offered in 1965 by Union Carbide as Bakelite Polysulfone, now renamed Udel. In 1967 Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing introduced Astrel 360 Table 21.3, V), which they referred to as a polyarylsulfone. In 1972 ICI brought a third material onto the market which they called a polyethersulphone (III) and which they then marketed as Victrex. They also introduced a material intermediate between III and V known as Polyethersulphone 720P (IV) but which has now been withdrawn. In the late 1970s Union Carbide introduced Radel (VI), which has a higher level of toughness. Around 1986 Union Carbide sold their interest in polysulphones to Amoco. In addition the Astrel materials were produced by Carborundum under licence from ICI. 

Polyether ether ketone (PEEK) (structure B of Table 21.5). This material was first prepared in the laboratories of ICI in 1977 and test marketed in 1978. The material is now marketed by Victrex as Victrex PEEK. 

Polyether ketone (PEK) (structure A). In 1986 three European companies (BASF, Hoechst and ICI) announced they were developing the material (to be marketed under the trade names of Ultrapek, Hostatec and Victrex PEK respectively). 

Although total usage of PAEK materials was estimated as being as high as 5000 t.p.a. in 1995 the withdrawal of all suppliers except Victrex reduced capacity to about 1600 t.p.a. by the end of 1996. In 1998 however Victrex announced a capacity expansion to 2000 t.p.a. 

Polymers based on these structures became available as Victrex SRP (ICI), Vectra (Hoechst) and Xydar (Amoco). It is reported that the Vectra materials are based on p-hydroxybenzoic acid and hydroxynaphthoic acid monomers, whilst Xydar is based on terephthalic acid, p-hydroxybenzoic acid and pp -dihydrox-ybiphenyl. Whilst properties vary between grades, in general they possess the following outstanding properties ... 

Report 86 High Performance Engineering Plastics, D.J. Kemmish, Victrex Ltd. Report 113 Rubber-Modified Thermoplastics, H. Keskkula, University of Texas at Austin. 

Report 86 High Performance Engineering Plastics, D.J. Kemmish, Victrex Ltd. 

APC (aromatic polymer composite), Hostatec, Ultrapek, Victrex PEEK... 

The most common way to modify aromatic polymers for application as a PEM is to employ electrophilic aromatic sulfonation. Aromatic polymers are easily sulfonated using concentrated sulfuric acid, fuming sulfuric acid, chlorosulfonic acid, or sulfur trioxide (or complexs thereof). Postmodification reactions are usually restricted due to their lack of precise control over the degree and location of functionalization, the possibility of side reactions, or degradation of the polymer backbone. Regardless, this area of PEM synthesis has received much attention and may be the source of emerging products such as sulfonated Victrex poly (ether ether ketone). 

Poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) is an aromatic, high performance, semicrystalline polymer with extremely good thermal stability, chemical resistance, and electrical and mechanical properties. This polymer shows little solubility in organic solvents due to the crystallinity. One of the first ways to characterize PEEK was by sulfonating the polymer. By adding sulfonic acid groups to the backbone, the crystallinity decreased and solubility increased.Commercially available Victrex appears to be one of the more interesting poly(arylene ether) s used for postmodification. 

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