General Electric Company

Sabic Innovative Plastics IP B.v.

John Lester Maxam

Roy Ray Odle

Kwok Pong Chan

Erik Christopher Hagberg

David Bruce Hall

James Mitchell White

Albert Santo Stella

Tara Jane Mullen

Sarah Elizabeth Genovese

Patrick Joseph McCloskey

James Alfred Day

Patricia Chapman Irwin

Hsin-Pang Wang

John Aibangbee Osaheni

Alison Liana Palmatier

Paul Michael Smigelski

Lawrence R Schmidt

Joel Matthew Caraher

Tara J Mullen

A method for preparing a polymer-organoclay composite composition comprises combining a solvent and an unexfoliated organoclay to provide a first mixture, wherein the unexfoliated organoclay comprises alternating inorganic silicate layers and organic layers, and has an initial spacing between the silicate layers; exposing the first mixture to an energized condition of a sufficient intensity and duration to increase the initial spacing of the inorganic silicate layers, to provide a second mixture; contacting the second mixture with a polymer composition so that the polymer composition fills at least one region located between at least one pair of silicate layers, wherein the polymer composition is at least partially soluble in the solvent; and removing at least a portion of the solvent from the second mixture, wherein the inorganic silicate layers remain separated by the polymer after removal of the solvent.

Methods of preparing polymer-organoclay composites and articles derived therefrom

A slot armor component for use in a rotor of a dynamo-electric machine comprises a plurality of profile co-extruded polymer layers. The composite cross-section of the profile co-extruded layers may include a first leg portion and a second leg portion disposed at an angle to the first leg portion. The plurality of co-extruded polymer layers may include a glass-filled polymer layer arranged between two unfilled polymer layers such as a glass-filled Ultem layer having a glass-fill concentration equal to or less than 30% arranged between two unfilled Ultem layers or a glass-filled polyetheretherketone (PEEK) layer having a glass-fill concentration equal to or less than 30% arranged between two unfilled PEEK layers.

Multilayer co-extrusion rotor slot armor and system for making the same

Extrusion of a mixture of an ester-substituted diaryl carbonate, such as bis-methyl salicyl carbonate, a dihydroxy aromatic compound such as bisphenol A and a transesterification catalyst such as tetrabutyl phosphonium acetate (TBPA) affords polycarbonate having a weight average molecular weight of greater than 20,000 Daltons. The extruder is equipped with one or more vacuum vents to remove by-product ester-substituted phenol. Similarly, a precursor polycarbonate having ester-substituted phenoxy endgroups, for example methyl salicyl endgroups, when subjected to extrusion affords a polycarbonate having a significantly increased molecular weight relative to the precursor polycarbonate. The reaction to form a higher molecular weight polycarbonate may be catalyzed by residual transesterification catalyst present in the precursor polycarbonate, or by a combination of any residual catalyst and an additional catalyst such as TBPA introduced in the extrusion step. Fries rearrangement products are not observed in the product polycarbonates.

Extrusion method for making polycarbonate

Spiro(bis)indane polycarbonates, including homo- and copolycarbonates, are devolatilized by extrusion under conditions of low viscous dissipation and low residence time. By this method, volatile impurities including spiro(bis)indane cyclic dimer may be removed.

Method for extruder devolatilization of spiro(bis)indane polycarbonates

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John Lester Maxam