Polyester copolymers from naphthalate and related esters

• Main Authors: NICHOLS; CARL S, ELLIS; ROBERT ADRIAN, THOMAS; JAMES SCOTT
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 29.02.2000
• Edition: 7
• Subjects: CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON; MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS OBTAINED OTHERWISE THAN BY REACTIONSONLY INVOLVING UNSATURATED CARBON-TO-CARBON BONDS; METALLURGY; ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP

A method is disclosed of producing a copolymer of polyethylene terephthalate and polyethylene naphthalate. The method comprises esterifying a combination of a diester of naphthalene, terephthalic acid, and ethylene glycol to produce an esterification reaction mixture that includes the alcohol byproduct of the naphthalene diester, distilling the reaction mixture to remove at least a portion of the esterification byproducts from the reaction mixture in the form of a vapor stream of which the majority component is water vapor and which includes the alcohol byproduct of the naphthalate ester in the vapor state, and combusting at least a portion of the vapor stream under conditions sufficient to decompose at least a portion of the alcohol byproduct present in the vapor stream.