Improvements in or relating to the manufacture of hydroxyl group containing polymerscontaining phosphorous

A process for the manufacture of hydroxyl group-containing polymers which contain phosphoric acid ester groups comprises reacting a diester of phosphorous acid containing at least two alcoholic hydroxyl groups per molecule with carbon tetrachloride in the presence of an amine catalyst. The amount of CCl4 may be between 1-0 and 2-0 moles for each equivalent of group present in the ester. The amine catalyst may be: Et3N, Me3N, dimethylethylamine, tripropylamine, N-methyl-aniline, N-ethylaniline or 2 : 5-dichloroaniline, and may be used in amount between 0-5 and 1-5 stoichiometric equivalents based on the group content of the polyhydroxy ester. The phosphorous acid diester may be prepared by ester interchange between a simple dialkyl phosphite, e.g. diethyl phosphite, and an excess of a polyol. Alternatively, phosphorous acid may be reacted with an alkylene oxide, e.g. ethylene oxide, epichlorhydrin at 70-150 DEG C. The phosphoric acid ester group-containing polymers may be reacted with an organic polyisocyanate optionally in the presence of a blowing agent to produce polyurethanes. In Examples: (1) the reaction product of diethylene glycol and diethyl phosphite is reacted with CCl4 in the presence of triethylamine, (2) the above reaction is effected in chloroform, (4) the reaction product of phosphorous acid and propylene oxide is reacted with CCl4 in chloroform in the presence of Et3N and this product mixed in Example (5) with N : N-dimethylbenzylamine, surfactant and water and diphenylmethane diisocyanate added to produce a rigid polyurethane foam.