JP2877415B2 - Polyether resin, its production method and optical material comprising it - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a polyether resin and a method for producing the same,
More specifically, it is excellent in optical properties such as being optically homogeneous, having a small photoelastic coefficient, low birefringence, and also having excellent heat resistance. For example, optical devices such as optical disks, optical fibers, and optical lenses TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a polyether resin, which is a novel resin that can be suitably used in various polymer material fields such as a device element field, and a preferable production method thereof.

The present invention also relates to an optical material using the polyether resin as a raw material.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, a polycarbonate resin, an acrylic resin, a polystyrene resin, or the like has been generally used as an organic polymer optical material used for an optical device element such as an optical disk, an optical fiber, and an optical lens.

However, among these, the acrylic resin is excellent in optical properties, but has a problem in that it has high hygroscopicity, causes twisting, and has poor dimensional stability during molding. On the other hand, the polycarbonate resin and the polystyrene resin hardly cause such a problem, but have a problem that the optical characteristics are not always satisfactory.

Under such circumstances, development of a novel polymer optical material has been promoted, and attempts have been made to use a polyformal resin or a polyether resin as the optical material.

These polyformal resins and polyether resins are
There are various types obtained by a polymerization reaction of a dihydric phenol and a dihalogen compound. Among them, polyformal using methylene chloride as the dihalogen compound is well known.

Some of these polyformal resins and polyether resins are disclosed, for example, in US Pat. No. 3,069,386. However, this conventional method has a problem that the time required for the reaction is long, and the reduced viscosity [η _sp / C] of the obtained polymer is as small as 0.07 to 0.15 dl / g.

In addition to the above, as a polyformal resin generally known for a relatively long time, there is a polyformal using bisphenol A as a raw material described in JP-A-54-125297. However, this polymer has a low glass transition temperature (T _g ) of 85 ° C., does not have sufficient heat resistance, and has poor optical characteristics, and is unsuitable as a material for optical elements.

In contrast, JP-A-60-188426 and JP-A-63-1918
The polyformals disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 28 and the like have improved optical characteristics by modifying the molecular structure, but are still not satisfactory.

On the other hand, JP-A-1-126329 discloses that [Here, R and R 'represent, for example, a methyl group or the like. ], And a use of the polyether resin as an optical material has been proposed. However, it is still difficult to say that this polyether resin has sufficient optical characteristics.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

 The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances.

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel polyether resin or the like with optical characteristics superior to conventional polyformal resin, etc., optical homogeneity, a small photoelastic coefficient, and low birefringence of a molded product. An object of the present invention is to provide a polyether resin having various advantages such as excellent heat resistance and heat resistance, and a suitable production method thereof and an optical material using the resin as a material.

[Means for solving the problem]

The present inventors have conducted intensive studies to solve the above problems, and as a result, a novel structure having a specific structure and a specific molecular weight obtained by polymerization of a dihydric phenol having a specific structure and a dihalogen compound having a specific structure. Polyether resin has excellent optical properties in various respects, such as better optical properties than conventional polyformal resins, and is a polymer with excellent heat resistance, and this polymer is used as a material for optical materials. They have found that they are extremely useful, and have completed the present invention based on these findings.

That is, the present invention provides the following general formula: (However, R ¹ and R ² in the formula [I] each independently represent a horizontal atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and R ³ represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or a carbon atom. R ⁴ represents an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or an aryl group having 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and n is an integer of 4 to 8). It is intended to provide a polyether resin having units and having a viscosity average molecular weight of 10,000 or more.

The present invention also provides a practically advantageous method for producing the polyether resin of the present invention and an optical material using the polyether resin as a raw material.

-Polyether resin- The polyether resin of the present invention has a repeating unit represented by the general formula [I].

R ¹ and R ² in the general formula [I] may be an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, such as a methyl group, an ethyl group, a propyl group, an isopropyl group, Butyl group, isobutyl group, 1-methylpropyl group,
tert-butyl, pentyl, isopentyl, 1-methylbutyl, 1-ethylpropyl, cyclopentyl, hexyl, isohexyl, 1-methylpentyl, 1-ethylbutyl, neohexyl, cyclohexyl, methylcyclopentyl And a cyclopentylmethyl group.

R ³ may be an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and specific examples of the alkyl group include those described above. R ³ also has 6 to 12 carbon atoms.
The aryl group may be, for example, a phenyl group, a 2-methylphenyl group, or a 3-methylphenyl group.
Methylphenyl group, 4-methylphenyl group, various xylyl groups, various ethylphenyl groups, various propylphenyl groups, various butylphenyl groups, various pentylphenyl groups, various hexylphenyl groups, various cyclopentylphenyl groups And various alkyl-substituted phenyl groups such as cyclohexylphenyl group, various biphenyl groups such as 4-phenylphenyl group, and various naphthyl groups such as 2-naphthyl group. Further, R ³ may be a hydrogen atom.

Examples of R ⁴ include the same alkyl groups having 1 to 6 carbon atoms and aryl groups having 6 to 12 carbon atoms as described above.

Wherein the combination of R ¹ and R ² may be selected freely from those exemplified above. A particularly preferable combination includes a case where both R ¹ and R ² are a methyl group.

The combination of R ³ and R ⁴ can be freely selected from those exemplified above. As a particularly preferred combination,
When R ³ is hydrogen and R ⁴ is a phenyl group, the case where R ³ is a methyl group and R ⁴ is a methyl group can be exemplified.

The polyether resin of the present invention may be a homopolymer composed of one kind of the repeating unit represented by the general formula [I], a copolymer composed of two or more kinds, or a mixture thereof. It may be.

Further, the polyether resin of the present invention may contain a repeating unit other than the repeating unit represented by the general formula [I] as long as the object of the present invention is not hindered.

One of the important points in the polyether resin of the present invention is that the polymer has a viscosity average molecular weight of 10,000 or more.

Those having a viscosity average molecular weight of less than 10,000 have poor heat resistance and mechanical strength, and are poor in practicality.

The upper limit of the viscosity average molecular weight is usually about 100,000 from the viewpoint of moldability.

When the polyether resin of the present invention is used as a material for an optical material, the viscosity average molecular weight is usually 12,000 to 18,0
Those in the range of 00 can be suitably used.

If necessary, the polyether resin of the present invention may be, for example, an ultraviolet absorber, an antioxidant, a heat stabilizer, a weather resistance improver, an antistatic agent, or an anti-fog within a range that does not interfere with the purpose of the present invention. Various additives such as an agent, a colorant, various fillers, a release agent, and a plasticizer, and other polymer components can be appropriately contained according to the purpose of use.

-Method for producing polyether resin-The method for producing the polyether resin of the present invention is not particularly limited, and can be produced by various methods, but usually, it can be suitably produced by the following method. .

That is, the present invention provides the following general formula as an example of a preferred method for producing the various polyether resins. [However, R ³ in the formula [II] represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or an aryl group having 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and R ⁴ represents an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or 6 carbon atoms. And X ¹ and X ² each independently represent a halogen atom. And a dihalogen compound represented by the following general formula: Wherein R ¹ and R ² in the formula [III] each independently represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and n is 4
８8. ], Wherein the dihydric phenol represented by the formula (1) is reacted in the presence of an alkali and a solvent.

Specific examples of R ¹ and R ² in the dihalogen compound represented by the general formula [II] include those exemplified above.

Specific examples of X ¹ and X ² in the dihalogen compound include a chlorine atom, a bromine atom and an iodine atom. Among these, a chlorine atom is particularly preferred.

Incidentally, X ¹ and X ² may be the same or may be different.

Specific examples of the dihalogen compound represented by the general formula (II) include, for example, 1,1-dichloroethane, 2,2-dichloropropane, 2,2-dichlorobutane, 3,3-dichloropentane, 2,2 -Dichlorooctane, phenyldichloromethane (also called α, α-dichlorotoluene), diphenyldichloromethane, 1,1-dichloro-1-phenylethane and the like.

Of these, phenyldichloromethane is particularly preferred.

These may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

Specific examples of the dihydric phenol represented by the general formula [III] include, for example, 1,1-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclopentane, 1,1-bis (3-
Methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclohexane, 1,
1-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) cycloheptane, 1,1-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclooctane, 1,1-bis (3-methyl-
4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclononane, 1,1-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclohexane, 1,1-bis (3-ethyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) cyclohexane, 1,1-bis (3-propyl-4-hydroxy Phenyl) cyclohexane and the like.

Among them, particularly preferred are 2,2-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl) propane and the like.

These may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

The polyether resin of the present invention can be obtained by reacting the dihalogen compound with the dihydric phenol in the presence of an alkali and a solvent.

As the alkali to be used, various acid acceptors can be used, and usually, an alkali metal compound is used. The alkali metal compound may be any compound that can convert the dihydric phenol into an alkali metal salt. Specific examples of the alkali metal compound include an alkali metal hydroxide, an alkali metal carbonate, and an alkali metal bicarbonate. Among these, an alkali metal hydroxide is particularly preferably used. Examples of the alkali metal hydroxide include lithium hydroxide, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, rubidium hydroxide, and cesium hydroxide. it can.
Among these, sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide are preferred.

Examples of the alkali metal carbonate include lithium carbonate, sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate, rubidium carbonate, and cesium carbonate. Among these,
Preferred are sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate.

Examples of the alkali metal bicarbonate include lithium bicarbonate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate,
Rubidium hydrogen carbonate, cesium hydrogen carbonate and the like can be mentioned. Among them, preferred are sodium hydrogencarbonate and potassium hydrogencarbonate.

Among the above various alkali metal compounds, sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide and the like are particularly preferable.

In addition, these may be used individually by 1 type, and may use 2 or more types together as needed.

Examples of the solvent include a monomer (dihalogen compound and dihydric phenol) to be used, an alkali salt thereof (eg, an alkali metal salt of dihydric phenol), and a solvent which is soluble in a polymer to be synthesized. Solvents can be suitably used.

Examples of the neutral polar solvent include, for example, N, N-dimethylformamide, N, N-diethylformamide, N, N-dimethylacetamide, N, N-diethylacetamide, N, N-
Dipropylacetamide, N, N-dimethylbenzoic acid amide, N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP), N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-isopropyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-isobutyl-2-pyrrolidone, N- n-propyl-2-pyrrolidone, Nn-butyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-cyclohexyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-methyl-3-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-ethyl-3-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-methyl-3,4,5-trimethyl-2-pyrrolidone, N-methyl-2-piperidone, N-
Ethyl-2-piperidone, N-isopropyl-2-piperidone, N-methyl-6-methyl-2-piperidone, N
-Methyl-3-ethylpiperidone, dimethylsulfoxide, diethylsulfoxide, 1-methyl-1-oxosulfolane, 1-ethyl-1-oxosulfolane, 1-phenyl-1-oxosulfolane, N, N'-dimethylimidazolidinone ( DMI), diphenylsulfone and the like. Preferred are NMP, DMI, sulfolane, diphenylsulfone and dimethylsulfoxide, particularly preferred is DMI.

These solvents may be used alone or in combination of two or more as needed. Also,
If necessary, it can be used as a mixed solvent with another solvent such as an aromatic hydrocarbon solvent.

The ratio of the dihalogen compound to be used in the reaction is usually set to 1 mol or more, preferably about 1.2 to 2.0 mol, per 1 mol of the dihydric phenol used.

The use ratio of the alkali such as the alkali metal compound,
It is usually appropriate to set the amount to at least 2 equivalents, preferably about 2.4 to 3.0 equivalents per mole of the dihydric phenol used.

One mole of the alkali metal hydroxide and one mole of the alkali metal bicarbonate are each equivalent, while one mole of the alkali metal carbonate is two equivalents.

The amount of the solvent such as the neutral polar solvent is not particularly limited, but generally, it is desirable to use the solvent and the alkali to be used or the polymer to be formed sufficiently to be sufficiently dissolved. For example, when NMP, DMI, or the like is used as the solvent, generally, the amount used is 200 to 2,000 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the total of the dihalogen compound, the dihydric phenol, and the alkali. Selected by range.

The polyether resin of the present invention can be synthesized by mixing the dihalogen compound component, the dihydric phenol component, the alkali component, and the solvent at the predetermined ratio and reacting them under conditions such as an appropriate temperature. it can. These various components may be added simultaneously or may be added stepwise. At the time of this reaction, an appropriate amount of a desired additive component such as an appropriate molecular weight regulator or terminal terminator can be added at an appropriate stage.

The reaction temperature is suitably in the range of 40 to 150 ° C, preferably 80 to 100 ° C.

If the reaction temperature is lower than 40 ° C., the reaction rate is too slow to be practical, and if it exceeds 150 ° C., side reactions may occur.

The reaction time of this polymerization reaction is usually about 1 to 8 hours, preferably about 3 to 4 hours.

After completion of the reaction, there is no particular limitation on the method of separating and recovering and purifying the polymer formed from the obtained polymerization solution, and various methods such as those used in the production of known polyformals and polyether resins are used. can do. Generally, for example, a polymerization solution is dissolved in a suitable good solvent (eg,
After dilution with the above neutral polar solvent or methylene chloride), the salt is removed by filtration or the like, and the desired polymer is precipitated with a poor solvent (for example, a lower alcohol such as methanol or isopropanol) and separated and recovered. . The recovered product (crude polyether resin) is again dissolved in an appropriate good solvent such as methylene chloride, precipitated in a poor solvent such as methanol, and purified to a desired purity by separation and recovery. It can be obtained as a polyether resin.

As described above, the polyether resin of the present invention can be efficiently produced by simple steps.

-Examples of properties and main uses of polyether resin-The polyether resin of the present invention obtained by the above method and the like has excellent properties such as heat resistance and mechanical strength, and furthermore, using this as a material, When finished as various molded products as optical materials, it has excellent optical properties such as being optically homogeneous, having a small photoelastic coefficient, having small optical anisotropy, and having small birefringence. Has characteristics.

Therefore, the polyether resin of the present invention, for example,
It can be advantageously used as a material for various polymer molded articles including optical materials that can be suitably used, such as various optical device elements such as optical disks, optical fibers, and optical lenses.

The optical material of the present invention comprises the polyether resin of the present invention in one form.
The species may be used alone as a material, or a mixture of two or more species may be obtained as a material.

Incidentally, the optical material of the present invention, if necessary, within a range that does not interfere with the purpose of the present invention, for example, an antioxidant, an antistatic agent, an antifogging agent, various additives such as a plasticizer and other additives. A polymer component can be appropriately added and blended.

As described above, when the polyether resin of the present invention is used as an optical material, generally, the viscosity average molecular weight is
Those in the range of 12,000 to 18,000 can be suitably used.

When the optical material of the present invention is finished as various optical material molded products as described above, a known molding method may be appropriately applied. Of course, a newly developed molding method can also be used.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to Examples and Comparative Examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

The evaluation of each resin as an optical material in the following Examples and Comparative Examples was performed as follows.

Birefringence: Each resin was molded into a flat plate using a minimat molding machine manufactured by Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd., and the birefringence of the molded product was measured.

Photoelastic coefficient (C _m ): Each resin is melt-spun with a Capillograph manufactured by Toyo Seiki Co., Ltd., and the yarn is pulled with a winder. C _m ).

These evaluation results are mainly used as indices of optical characteristics.

Note that the reduced viscosity [η _sp / C] of each resin is 20 ° C. of a 0.5 g / dl concentration solution using methylene chloride as a solvent.
Are shown as the values in.

In addition, the viscosity average molecular weight Mv was determined in terms of polycarbonate.

Example 1 1,1-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)
Cyclohexane 44.4 g, α, α-dichlorotoluene 2
5.0 g, sodium hydroxide 12.5 g and 1,3-dimethyl-2
Reaction was carried out at 80 ° C. for 6 hours while stirring a mixed solution of 150 ml of imidazolidinone (DMI).

After the reaction was completed, the polymerization solution was diluted with DMI, and the insoluble salts were filtered. Water was dropped into the filtrate to recover the polymer.

Next, this polymer was redissolved in methylene chloride and purified and recovered with methanol. As a result, η _sp /C=0.415dl/
g, viscosity average molecular weight Mv = 16,600, glass transition temperature Tg = 121
° C resin was obtained.

As a result of infrared absorption spectrum analysis, this polymer was found to be No. 1
The chart shown in the figure was obtained. From this spectrum, the polymer was identified as a polyether having the following repeating units.

The optical properties are shown in Table 1.

Example 2 1,1-bis (3-methyl-4-hydroxyphenyl)
Cyclohexane 44.4 g, 1,1-dichloroethane 15.0
g, sodium hydroxide 12.5 g and 1,3-dimethyl-2-
Example 1 150 ml of imidazolidinone (DMI) was prepared, and
Polymerization was carried out in the same manner as described above.

As a result, η _sp /C=0.331 dl / g, Mv = 12,800, Tg = 115
° C resin was obtained.

This polymer was identified as a polyether having the following structure by IR analysis or the like.

The optical properties are shown in Table 1.

Comparative Example 1 Polyformal obtained by polymerization of 2,2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane and dichloromethane was a polymer having the following repeating units and had the optical characteristics shown in Table 1.

Comparative Example 2 A polycarbonate obtained from 2,2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane had the optical characteristics shown in Table 1.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, it has a specific repeating unit composed of a specific dihydric phenol unit having an alkyl group introduced at a specific position and a specific substituted methylene group, and has a specific molecular weight (viscosity average). Is a novel polyether resin having high molecular weight), which has better optical properties than conventional polyformal resins, etc., is optically homogeneous, has a small photoelastic coefficient, has a small optical anisotropy, and Provides polyether resin having various advantages such as excellent optical properties such as low refraction and excellent heat resistance, etc., and also provides a suitable manufacturing method thereof and an optical material using this resin as a material. can do.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an example of a polyether resin of the present invention (Example 1).
3 is a chart showing an infrared absorption spectrum of the resin obtained in (1). The horizontal axis in the figure indicates the wave number (cm ^-1 ), and the vertical axis indicates the absorption intensity.

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. The following general formula: (However, R ¹ and R ² in the formula [I] each independently represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and R ³ represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or a carbon atom. R ⁴ represents an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or an aryl group having 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and n is an integer of 4 to 8). A polyether resin having units and having a viscosity average molecular weight of 10,000 or more. 2. The following general formula: [However, R ³ in the formula [II] represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or an aryl group having 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and R ⁴ represents an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or 6 carbon atoms. And X ¹ and X ² each independently represent a halogen atom. And a dihalogen compound represented by the following general formula: Wherein R ¹ and R ² in the formula [III] each independently represent a hydrogen atom or an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, and n is 4
８8. The method for producing a polyether resin according to claim 1, wherein the dihydric phenol represented by the following formula is reacted in the presence of an alkali and a solvent. 3. An optical material comprising the polyether resin according to claim 1 as a raw material.