Polimeri Europa S.p.a.

Versalis S.p.a.

Gabriele Veneri

Luca Soddu

Fabio Montanari

Federica Mainardi

A process for the preparation of a 1,3-butadiene and styrene copolymer comprising the following steps: a) anionically polymerizing a blend comprising from 5% by weight to 40% by weight of styrene and from 60% by weight to 95% by weight of 1,3-butadiene, with respect to the overall weight of the mixture, in the presence of at least one hydrocarbon solvent, of at least one lithium-based catalyst having the general formula LiRwherein Rrepresents a linear or branched C-Calkyl group, and of least one polar modifier; b) optionally, reacting the copolymer obtained in step (a) with at least one chain-end monomer selected from 1,3-butadiene, styrene and &#x3b1;-methylstyrene; c) reacting from 10% by weight to 70% by weight, preferably from 20% by weight to 50% by weight, of the lithium-terminated polymeric chains present in the copolymer obtained in step (a) or in step (b), with at least one coupling agent selected from liquid polyepoxides having at least three reactive sites capable of reacting with the carbon-lithium chain-ends; d) optionally, reacting the copolymer obtained in step (c) with at least one chain-end monomer selected from 1,3-butadiene, styrene and a-methylstyrene; e) reacting the linear polymeric chains remaining in the copolymer obtained in step (c) or in step (d), with at least one tin compound having the general formula XSn(R)wherein X represents a halogen atom such as, for example, chlorine and R2 represents a linear or branched C-Calkyl group.

Process for the preparation of 1,3-butadiene and styrene copolymers and use thereof in vulcanizable elastomeric compositions

A process for the preparation of diene polymers or vinylarene-diene statistical (random) copolymers which comprises the anionic (cp) polymerization, in hydrocarbon solvents, of at least one monomer of a conjugated diene, optionally in the presence of a vinyl aryl monomer, and using a compound belonging to the group of lithium alkyls as initiator, characterized in that the total lithium alkyl initiator is modified in situ by means of a reaction with a compound having general formula (I): R&#x2014;(X&#x2014;H)(I) wherein R is a C2-C20 (cyclo) alkyl or C6-C20 aromatic radical, X is a heteroatom belonging to group VA or group VIA of the periodic system, n is an integer higher than or equal to 1, m is an integer&#x3e;1 which depends on the valence of the heteroatom X.

Process for the preparation of diene polymers of statistical vinylarene-diene copolymers

A process for obtaining an elastomer in solid phase from its polymer solution which comprises: (a) optionally pre-concentrating the polymer solution coming from the production system by a flash process; (b) subjecting the polymer solution to a concentrating stripping operation by water vapor in a mixing device comprising internal moveable mixing parts which transfer minimal mechanical energy to the solution in the form of friction heat; and (c) subjecting the concentrated polymer phase coming from (b) to devolatilization by mechanical energy and/or vapor flow to remove residual solvent.

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Ravenna, Italy

Gabriele Veneri