Preparation and properties of novel alternating poly(aryl ether ketone)

Novel alternating poly(aryl ether ketone)s (PAEKs) were prepared from a multiple aromatic difluoroketone monomer, that is, containing six aromatic rings via nucleophilic substitution polycondensation with various bisphenols. Each chain segment of the synthesized poly aryl ether ketone alternating copolymer was regularly separated by bisphenol units, which resulted in improvements in their thermal stability and solubility in common organic solvents. All glass transition temperatures of the alternating PAEKs were above 179°C, and the temperatures at 5% weight loss were above 446°C under nitrogen atmosphere. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction patterns confirmed that the resulting PAEKs were amorphous. PAEKs can form strong, transparent, and flexible films by solution casting, with a tensile strength of 72–79 MPa, Young’s modulus of 1.5–2.0 GPa, and elongation at break of 7–17%