Continuous mass polymerization process for polyblends

Claim 1

A CONTIUOUS MASS POLYMERIZATION PROCESS FOR PRODUCING HIGH IMPACT STRENGTH POLYMERIC POLYBLENDS CONTAINING A DISPERSED GRAFTED RUBBER PHASE COMPRISING THE STEPS: A. CHARGING CONTINUOUSLY TO AN INTIAL CONTINUOUS STIRRED ISOTHERMAL REACTION ZONE A MONOMER COMPOSITION COMPRISING AT LEAST ONE MONOALKENYL AROMATIC MONOMER OF THE FORMULA AR-C(-X)=CH2 WHERE AR IS SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF A PHENYL, HALOPHENYL, ALKYLPHENYL, ALKYLHALOPHENYL AND MIXTURES THEREOF AND X IS SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF HYDROGEN AND AN ALKYL RADICAL OF LESS THAN THREE CARBON ATOMS HAVING ABOUT 2 TO 15% OF A DIENE RUBBER BY WEIGHT DISSOLVED THEREIN, B. MAINTAINING REACTION CONDITONS IN SAID INITIAL CONTINUOUS STIRRED ISOTHERMAL REACTION ZONE HAVING A CONSTANT FILLAGE OF FROM 10 TO 90% OF ITS VOLUME WITH SAID MONOMER COMPOSITION SUCH AS TO PRODUCE, A STEADY STATE POLYMERIZATION OF SAID MONOMER AT A TEMPERATURE OF FROM 110* TO 140*C. UNDER A PRESSURE OF FROM 1 TO 150 PSIG, WHEREIN ABOUT 10 TO 50% BY WEIGHT OF SAID MONOMER IS POLYMERIZED TO A FIRST POLYMER OF A PREDETERMINED AVERAGE MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF FROM ABOUT 40,000 TO 100,000 MW ST AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID FIRST POLYMER BEING GRAFTED TO SAID DIENE RUBBER AND THE REMAINDER BEING DISSOLVED IN SAID ALKENYL AROMATIC MONOMER AS A MONOMER-POLYMER PHASE, SAID DIENE RUBBER AND SAID GRAFTED DIENE RUBBER BEING DISPERSED UNDER SHEARING AGITATION IN SAID MONOMERPOLYMER PHASE AS RUBBER-MONOMER PARTICLES HAVING A WEIGHT AVERAGE DIAMETER OF ABOUT 0.5 TO 10 MICRONS AND HAVING OCCLUDED THEREN A PORTION OF SAID MONOMERPOLYMER PHASE, C. WITHDRAWING CONTINUOUSLY FROM SAID INITIAL REACTION ZONE SAID MONOMER-POLYMER PHASE HAVING SAID RUBBERMONOMER PARTICLES DISPERSED THEREIN AS A FIRST MIXTURE, D. CHARGING CONTINUOUSLY SAID FIRST MIXTURE TO A FIRSTAGE OF A CONTINUOUS STAGED ISOBARIC STIRRED REACTION ZONE HAVING A PLURALIYTY OF STAGES SO AS TO PRODUCE SUBSTANTIALLY LINEAR FLOW THROUGH SAID STAGES DOWNSTREAM TO A FINAL STAGE, EACH OF SAID STAGES OPERATING AT SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT GRAVIMETRIC FILLAGE OF FROM ABOUT 15 TO 90% OF ITS VOLUME OF A POLYMERIZING FIRST MIXTURE, E. MAINTAINING CONDITIONS IN SAID CONTINUOUS STAGED ISOBARIC, STIRRED REACTION ZONE AS A SECOND REACTION ZONE SO AS TO POLYMERIZE SAID FIRST MIXTURE BY PROGRESSIVE MULTISTAGE SUBSTANTIALLY LINEAR FLOW POLYMERIZATION, ALL SAID STAGES OPERATING WITH SHEARING AGITATION AND COMMON EVAPORATIVE VAPOR PHASE COOLING UNDER ISOBARIC CONDITIONS IN SAID SECOND ZONE, PROVIDING EACH SAID STAGE WITH STEADY STATE POLYMERIZATION AT A CONTROLLED TEMPERATURE OF FROM 130* TO 180*C. WITH A PRESSURE OF FROM ABOUT 7 TO 28 PSIA AND INTERFACIAL LIQUID CONTACT STAGE TO STAGE ESTABLISHING A PRESSURE GRADIENT FROM THE FIRST STAGE DOWNSTREAM TO THE FINAL STAGE CAUSING SUBSTANTIALLY LINEAR FLOW THROUGH SAID SECOND ZONE, EACH SAID STAGE OPERATING AT A PREDETERMINED HIGHER CONVERSION LEVEL OF FROM ABOUT 10 TO 90% PRODUCING A COMPOSITE POLYMER AS A SECOND POLYMER IN SAID SECOND ZONE HAVING A PREDETERMINED AVERAGE MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF FROM ABOUT 40,000 TO 100,000 MW ST, THEREBY MAINTAINING THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF SAID RUBBER-MONOMER PARTICLE, SAID SECOND ZONE PRODUCING A SECOND MIXTURE HAVING A SECOND POLYMER SOLIDS CONTENT BEING DETERMINED BY SAID MULTISTAGE STEADY STATE POLYMERIZATION AND EVAPORATION OF SAID MONOMERS, F. WITHDRAWING CONTINUOUSLY SAID SECOND MIXTURE FROM SAID FINAL STAGE, SAID SECOND MIXTURE COMPRISING FROM ABOUT 50 TO 90% BY WEIGHT OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND POLYMERS AS A COMBINED POLYMER HAVING A PREDETERMINED MOLECULAR WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION CONSISTENT WITH A DISPERSION INDEX OF FROM ABOUT 2.0 TO 4.0, AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND POLYMER BEING GRAFTED TO SAID DIENE RUBBER AND THE REMAINDER BEING DISSOLVED IN SAID MONOMERPOLYMER PHASE, HAVING ABOUT 2 TO 15% OF SAID DIENE RUBBER MOIETY DISPERSED IN SAID MONOMERPOLYMER PHASE AS GRAFTED RUBBER-MONOMER PARTICLES HAVING A WEIGHT AVERAGE DIAMETER OF 0.5 TO 10 MICRONS, AND HAVING OCCLUDED THEREIN A PORTION OF SAID MONOMER-POLYMER PHASE, SAID COMBINED POLYMERS AND SAID GRAFTED DIENE RUBBER BEING SEPARABLE AS POLYMERIC SOLIDS FROM A SECOND MIXTURE VOLIATE PHASE, G. REMOVING CONTINUOUSLY A VAPOR PHASE EVOLVED FROM SAID POLYMERIZING FIRST MIXTURE IN SAID STAGED ISOBARIC STIRRED REACTION ZONE AT A RATE SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN THE TEMPERATURE OF SAID FIRST MIXTURE AT A PREDETERMINED TEMPERATURE OF FROM ABOUT 130* TO 180*C. AND UNDER A PREDETERMINED ISOBARIC PRESSURE FROM ABOUT 7 TO 28 PSIA, H. THE WITHDRAWING OF SAID SECOND MIXTURE FROM SAID FINAL STAGE BEING AT A RATE APPROXIMATING THE TOTAL RATE AT WHICH ALL ADDITIONS ARE MADE TO ALL STAGES OF SAID CONTINUOUS STAGED ISOBARIC STIRRED REACTION ZONE, I. HEATING SAID SECOND MIXTURE AT SUFFICIENTLY ELEVATED TEMPERATURES OF FROM ABOUT 200* TO 250*C. UNTIL SAID GRAFTED RUBBER-MONOMER PARTICLES ARE CROSSLINKED TO A PREDETERMINED SWELLING INDEX OF FROM ABOUT 7 TO 20, J. SEPARATING SAID POLYMERIC SOLIDS FROM SAID SECOND MIXTURE VOLATIZE PHASE WHEREIN SAID POLYMERIC SOLIDS COMPRISES A POLYBLEND OF SAID COMBINED POLYMERS HAVING DISPERSED THEREIN CROSSLINKED RUBBER PARTICLES HAVING OCCLUDED AND GRAFTED FIRST AND SECOND POLYMERS PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT OF ABOUT 0.5 TO 5 GRAMS FOR EACH GRAM OF RUBBER AND A WEIGHT AVERAGE DIAMETER OF 0.5 TO 10 MICRONS.