The B. F. Goodrich Company

Gerald V Wootton

Linwood P Tenney

Parley C Lane, Jr

Kong S Yi

Methanol and cyclohexane are recovered from a condensed methanol-cyclohexane azeotrope by allowing the condensed azeotrope to separate in a vessel into an upper phase rich in cyclohexane and a lower phase rich in methanol, fractionating the upper phase in a first column whereby the methanol-cyclohexane azeotrope is taken off the top and returned to the vessel while cyclohexane is removed from the lower portion of the first column, and fractionating the lower phase in a second column whereby the methanol-cyclohexane azeotrope is taken off the top and returned to the vessel while methanol is removed from the lower portion of the second column.

Recovery of components of a binary azeotrope

Precipitation of a polymer from polymer cement containing about 15 to 80% solids is accomplished by mixing the cement with water and a nonsolvent near or above the boiling point of a ternary azeotrope whereby the polymer precipitates forming a slurry and the ternary azeotrope is withdrawn as a vapor, separating the polymer from the liquid phase and recycling the liquid phase to the mixing step, the polymer cement being a honey-like solution in a nonpolar solvent of a polymer prepared by ring opening polymerization in the nonpolar solvent of at least one cyclic olefin containing at least one norbornene group, the nonsolvent is selected from lower alcohols that form binary azeotropes with water, and the ternary azeotrope comprising the nonpolar solvent, the nonsolvent, and water. The process can be operated either in batchwise segments or continuously throughout.

Precipitation of polycycloolefins

Process for precipitating a polycycloolefin from polymer cement comprising mixing said cement with a sufficient amount of a lower alcohol and water precipitant to cause said polymer to precipitate, and separating said polymer from the remaining liquid phase, the polymer cement having about 15 to 80% solids concentration and being a honey-like solution in a nonpolar hydrocarbon solvent of a polymer formed by ring opening polymerization of at least one monomer containing at least one norbornene group. The precipitation process can be either batch or continuous throughout.

Precipitation of polymeric cycloolefins

Precipitation of polymer from a polymer cement comprising the polymer dissolved in cyclohexane is accomplished by mixing the cement with methanol whereby the polymer precipitates forming a polymer slurry comprising polymer solids dispersed in cyclohexane and methanol, heating the polymer slurry to vaporize methanol and cyclohexane in azeotropic proportion, condensing the vaporized methanol and cyclohexane whereby it separates into an upper phase that is nearly all cyclohexane and a lower phase that is rich in methanol, separating the phases, and separating the polymer from the residual slurry comprising polymer solids dispersed in methanol, the polymer being a reaction product formed by ring opening polymerization of at least one monomer containing at least one norbornene group. The process can be conducted in batchwise segments or continuously throughout.

Anhydrous precipitation of polycycloolefins

Process for preconcentrating polymer cement normally containing about 15% solids comprising mixing therewith an amount of a hydrocarbon nonsolvent liquid sufficient to form a two-phase system but insufficient to precipitate the polymer, and separating the two phases; the polymer cement is a honey-like solution of a polymer prepared by ring opening polymerization of at least one monomer containing the norbornene group in a nonpolar hydrocarbon solvent; the upper phase being a thin hydrocarbon liquid comprising nonsolvent, a substantial portion of the nonpolar solvent in the polymer cement, and impurities, and the lower phase being a preconcentrated polymer cement containing at least 20% solids.

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Akron, OH, United States of America

Gerald V Wootton