Warm Global Customers
With China Plastic Machinery
With China Plastic Machinery
PPSU (polyphenylene sulfone resin) is an amorphous polymer, also known as polyphenylsulfone, with excellent rigidity and toughness, and better impact resistance and chemical resistance than polyetherimide (PEI). PPSU is an amber transparent material that is easy to color and process, and its heat deformation temperature can reach 196буC. It can withstand more than 1,000 cycles of 134буC steam sterilization without any significant loss of performance. Polyphenylene sulfone resin (PPSU) has no melting point, reflecting its amorphous nature, and has a tensile strength of up to 70MPa (10152psi).
Polyphenylene sulfone resin is a new type of special engineering plastic that appeared in the 1960s. It has the advantages of being non-toxic, self-extinguishing, and corrosion-resistant. It is used in aerospace, automobiles, tableware, medical equipment and other fields. There are two industrial production methods for polyphenylene sulfone (PPSU), namely the two-step method and the one-step method.
Depending on the application environment, the molding method can be injection, extrusion and blow molding. As the highest performance material among sulfone polymers, PPSU has passed IS010993, NSF, ACS, WARS, UL94, Reach and RoSH certifications. Therefore, PPSU has been widely used in medical disinfection boxes, dental instrument handles, aircraft interiors and food trays, PEX water pipe joints, ventilator humidifier tanks, baby bottles and other fields.
Raw material selection: When producing PPSU, high-purity, high-quality phenol, terephthalic acid and diphenyl sulfone are essential raw materials, and their quality will have a significant impact on the performance of PPSU. Catalyst selection: The synthesis of PPSU usually requires the assistance of catalysts. Common catalysts include transition metal salts, organic metal catalysts, etc. When selecting a catalyst, we should pay attention to its catalytic efficiency, reaction stability and its impact on the performance of PPSU. Condition regulation: In order to ensure the smooth progress of the reaction and obtain high-quality products, we need to control the key conditions such as reaction temperature, pressure, time, etc. in the PPSU synthesis process. For example, too high or too low reaction temperature will affect the progress of the reaction, and too short or too long reaction time will also affect the quality of the product. Post-treatment: After the synthesis of PPSU is completed, a series of post-treatments are required, such as neutralization, precipitation, washing, drying, etc., to remove impurities and improve the purity and performance of PPSU materials.
Polysulfone (PSU) was developed by Alfred Farnham and Robert Johnson, senior researchers at Union Carbide Corp. UCC in the United States in the 1960s, and commercialized in 1965.
Polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) was successfully developed by Union Carbide Corp. UCC in 1972. It is a new type of special engineering plastic that appeared in the 1960s and is a non-crystalline polymer compound. Its main chain contains benzene rings, and the sulfur atom of the -SO2- group is in the highest oxidation state, so it has good antioxidant properties, mechanical properties and thermal stability, and the presence of ether bonds provides a certain toughness. In addition, polysulfone has the advantages of being non-toxic, self-extinguishing, and corrosion-resistant. It is used in aerospace, automobiles, tableware, medical equipment and other fields. However, commercialization was completed by the Belgian Solvay Company in the late 1990s.
According to the different synthetic monomers, polysulfone materials are divided into three categories: ordinary bisphenol A polysulfone (PSU), polyphenylene sulfone (PPSU) and polyether sulfone (PES). The three types of polysulfone materials have similar properties due to the similarity of molecular groups, but also have different properties due to different structural properties.
Polyphenylene sulfone is also known as polyphenyl sulfone, abbreviated as PPSU in English. Polyphenyl sulfone is the first finished product launched in 1976 by Union Carbide Corporation of the United States after the development of Udel? PSU. It is made by nucleophilic reaction of 4,4'-dichlorodiphenyl sulfone and biphenylene phenol. The HDT of PPSU is 207бц, the highest among the three polysulfone materials.
Starting from the controlled polymerization of polyphenylsulfone (PPSU), a sulfolane solution washing process and a solution filtration process are used to obtain a PPSU resin with high light transmittance. Subsequently, an activated carbon adsorption process and a direct distillation process are used to improve the quality of the solvent, and finally a PPSU resin with high thermal stability and a lighter color is obtained. The chloromethane end-capping process and the phenol end-capping process can further improve the thermal stability of the PPSU resin.
There are two industrial production methods for polyphenylene sulfone (PPSU), namely the two-step method and the one-step method.
Industrial production mainly adopts the two-step method, and the specific route is: bisphenol A first reacts with an alkali in situ to generate bisphenol A disodium salt, and then undergoes a nucleophilic substitution reaction with 4,4'-dichlorodiphenyl sulfone to desalt and polymerize to generate a polysulfone product. Polysulfone can also be synthesized by one-step method, which is mainly divided into polymerization section and post-processing section: in the early stage polymerization section, the required raw materials have 4.4'-dichlorodiphenyl sulfone, bisphenol A, bisphenol S, biphenyl diphenol, potassium carbonate or potassium bicarbonate, etc., these raw materials are polymerized in common solvents (such as dimethyl sulfoxide, N, N-dimethylformamide, N, N-dimethylacetamide, N-methyl pyrrolidone, cyclopentane, etc.), and toluene, dimethylbenzene or chlorobenzene are selected as dehydrating agents. Then enter the post-processing section, use a solvent different from the front stage polymerization process as a precipitation agent, inject the viscous liquid after polymerization, and now polysulfone can be separated from the polymer solution, then purified, dried, granulated and packaged. In this stage, Chinese manufacturers usually use water as a precipitation agent, and foreign polysulfone manufacturers usually use ethanol or methanol as a precipitation agent. The one-step or two-step production method is related to production efficiency. The one-step method shortens the synthesis steps, avoids the dehydration process, and shortens the reaction time. It is the most advanced production process for polymer materials, but the two-step method is still used in industrial production.
The polymerization of PPSU belongs to solution polycondensation reaction, which requires a high polymerization temperature and a long time. The requirements for the solvent are as follows:
1. Stable, non-gasified, and non-decomposed at the temperature required for the polymerization reaction;
2. Able to dissolve the monomers participating in the reaction and the generated polymer, and the viscosity of the generated solution is appropriate:
3. Does not participate in the reaction during the reaction and remains stable to the attack of nucleophilic reagents;
4. Easy to post-process.
According to the above requirements, commonly used solvents mainly include cyclopentane sulfone (TMS), methyl pyrrolidone (NMP), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and diphenyl sulfone (DPS).
When using NMP and DMSO as solvents for polymerization, the solvent will be discharged from the system with water in a large proportion during the salt formation stage. The specific solvent discharge ratio is difficult to determine, resulting in an unstable amount of solvent in the system and difficulty in achieving a stable control level by online viscosity control; using NMP and DMSO as polymerization solvents, the highest temperature for salt formation and polymerization under normal pressure can only be close to the boiling point of the solvent. The low polymerization temperature leads to incomplete salt formation, slow polymerization reaction, and long reaction time. The risk of degradation and oxidation of these two solvents is high; in the large-scale industrial design process of NIMP and DMSO, the toxicity and safety of the solvent itself must be considered, and the cost is relatively high.
Compared with the first three solvents, diphenyl sulfone has the highest boiling point and the best stability. The reaction temperature can reach 300C, but diphenyl sulfone is insoluble in water. Organic solvents such as acetone or ethanol are required for extraction during the resin purification process.
Note: As can be seen from the above data table, polyphenyl sulfone (PPSU) is an amorphous, heat-resistant, transparent, high-performance thermoplastic. This polymer is known for its high toughness, high flexural and tensile strength, excellent hydrolytic stability, and good chemical and heat resistance. It has the highest performance of our sulfone polymers, with excellent mechanical properties and chemical resistance compared to PSU and PES.
High service temperature (180буC).
Good chemical compatibility.
Excellent hydrolysis resistance (suitable for repeated steam sterilization).
High stiffness over a wide range of temperatures.
Very high impact strength.
High dimensional stability.
Excellent resistance to high-energy radiation (gamma rays and X-rays).
Good electrical insulation.
Excellent dielectric properties.
Due to its excellent chemical resistance, PPSU is often an excellent choice for components exposed to high temperatures and corrosive media. PPSU is widely used in aircraft interiors, instrument handles, medical device components, etc.
Food service: PPSU is biologically inert, BPA-free, and can withstand long-term and repeated exposure to hot water, steam, oil or grease. It can be used to make baby cups, bottles, etc.
Dental and surgical instruments: PPSU is lightweight and high-strength, making it a good substitute for metal in medical device and accessory applications.
Aircraft interiors: PPSU series products are used for aircraft cabin interiors, which require low heat release, low smoke generation and low toxic gas emissions. They have excellent toughness and impact strength, excellent tolerance to detergents and chemical disinfectants, and in-mold colors eliminate painting.
PPSU materials also have better impact resistance and chemical stability than PSU and PEI. They can be used to make flow controllers and laboratory instruments, high-strength adhesives for dental implants, pump covers, tower outer protective layers, acid-resistant nozzles, pipes, valve containers, etc. in chemical equipment.
PPSU material has great market potential and is one of the fastest growing special engineering plastics in recent years. The global demand has exceeded 30,000 tons per year. In recent years, China's demand for PPSU resin has increased by 10-15% per year, and in 2015, China's demand reached 8,000 tons. PPSU resin has passed FDA certification and NSF food and drinking water contact certification, has good biocompatibility, and is widely used in a variety of medical device products. With excellent high transparency, high strength, hot water resistance, non-toxicity and other properties, after the EU restricted the application of polycarbonate (PC) in food and medicine, PPSU, as an emerging material, gradually replaced PC with its superiority, especially for baby bottle products. Baby bottle water cup, PPSU to today's composite related products are born
PPSU is a beeswax-colored polymer, also called polyphenylene sulfone resin. Due to its good rigidity and toughness, temperature resistance, heat resistance, corrosion resistance and easy processing, it is often used to make baby bottle bodies. It is included in the list of 107 food packaging materials by the Ministry of Health, and its specific migration amount is: (1,1'-biphenyl)-4,4'-diol б▄6 mg/kg; 1,1'-sulfonylbis(4-chlorobenzene) б▄0.05 mg/kg. However, the announcement did not mention the detection method, and there is no relevant national standard. The national food standard T/ZZB 2379-2021 Polyphenylene sulfone (PPSU) infant water cup implemented in October 2021 is recognized by the US FDA as a food contact material, and the relevant standard is FDA 2l CFR 177.2440 "Food Grade Polyethersulfone Resin".
If you are interested in our company and machine, feel free to contact our sales engineer. We will contact you as soon as possible.