Improvements in or relating to the Manufacture of Polymeric Materials

1,160,269. Alkylene oxide polymers; polyurethanes. IMPERIAL CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES Ltd. 28 Oct., 1966 [12 Nov., 1965], No. 48130/65. Addition to 983,916. Headings C3C and C3R. Alkylene oxide polymers are prepared by a modification of the process claimed in U.K. Specification 983,916, characterized in that an alkylene oxide is reacted with a polyhydric alcohol having a melting-point above 100‹ C. or an amine having at least three active hydrogen atoms and no hydroxyl groups in the molecule or a mixture thereof and in that there is present at the start of the reaction between 15 and 50%, based on the total weight of reagents used, of a reaction product of a dihydric alcohol and at least 1 mol. of an alkylene oxide or a reaction product of a trihydric alcohol and from 1 to 4 mols. of an alkylene oxide, said dihydric or trihydric alcohol having a melting- point below 100‹ C. Specified polyhydric alcohols are trimethylolethane, pentaerythritol, methyl glucoside, sorbitol, mannitol, dulcitol, dipentaerythritol, sucrose and glucamine, glucosamine and glucosaminol and their N-alkyl derivatives. Suitable amines include ethylene diamine, diethylene triamine, triethylene tetramine, hexamethylene diamine, 1,2-diaminocyclohexane, phenylene diamines, mixtures of amines obtained by reduction of the dinitration products of toluene, 4,41-diaminodiphenylmethane and reaction products of aniline and formaldehyde. Alkylene oxides which may be used are, for example, ethylene oxide, propylene oxide and butylene oxides and mixtures thereof. Specified dihydric alcohols on which the pre-formed reaction product is based are ethylene glycol, 1,2-propylene glycol, trimethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, butylene glycols and N-methyldiethanolamine, and specified trihydric alcohols are glycerol, trimethylolpropane and other hexanetriols, triethanolamine and tri-isopropanolamine. The resulting alkylene oxide polymers may be reacted with an organic polyisocyanate, e.g. a tolylene diisocyanate or a diphenylmethanediisocyanate, to give cellular or non-cellular polyurethanes in the presence of, as necessary, gas-generating agents, catalysts, surface-active agents and flame-proofing agents.