Study on the synthesis of soluble copolymer polyarylate from asymmetric bisphenol A derivative (2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)butane/9,9-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)fluorene) monomer

A series of polyarylates composed of different bisphenol monomers were synthesized by interfacial polymerization using 9,9-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)fluorene (BHPF), 2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)butane (BPB), terephthaloyl chloride (TPC), and isophthaloyl chloride (IPC) as raw materials. The DFT calculations showed that the energy required for the reaction of BHPF with TPC/IPC was between 15.82 and 16.04 Kcal/mol, which was higher than the energy required for the reaction of BPB with TPC/IPC of 8.05–8.40 Kcal/mol. The solubility test showed that the solubility of BHPF-BPB-type polyarylate was better than that of BPB-type polyarylate in various organic solvents with T g ranging from 199.3 to 215.0°C, indicating that the solubility was improved while increasing the T g of the products. The weight loss ( T 5% ) and maximum weight loss ( T max ) of BHPF-BPB-type polyarylates under N 2 atmosphere ranged from 464.6–489.4°C and 521.7–534.6°C, indicating good thermal stability. The tensile strength of the BHPF-BPB-type polyarylates ranged from 53.21 to 61.23 MPa, Young's modulus ranged from 1479.66 to 1867.23 MPa and elongation at break ranged from 19.5% to 30.1%. The mechanical property test showed that the BHPF-BPB-type polyarylates have high tensile strength. These characteristics indicate that BHPF-BPB-type polyarylates have a very broad potential for application in engineering plastics.