The present invention is directed to novel functionalized spirocentric compounds and polymers thereof that produce hyper-rigid cross-linked membranes.

A method of producing a polyether alcohol that includes feeding an initiator into a reactor, feeding one or more monomers into the reactor, feeding a polymerization catalyst into the reactor, the polymerization catalyst being a Lewis acid catalyst having a general formula M(R.sup.1).sub.1(R.sup.2).sub.1(R.sup.3).sub.1(R.sup.4).sub.0 or 1, separate from feeding the initiator into the reactor, feeding a hydrogen bond acceptor additive into the reactor, the hydrogen bond acceptor additive being a C.sub.2 to C.sub.20 organic molecule having at least two hydroxyl groups, of which two hydroxyl groups are situated in 1,2-, 1,3-, or 1,4-positions on the organic molecule, and allowing the initiator to react with the one or more monomers in the presence of the polymerization catalyst and the hydrogen bond acceptor additive to form a polyether alcohol having a number average molecular weight greater than a number average molecular weight of the initiator.

The present invention relates to a method for the manufacture of polyalkoxylated polymers.

Provided is a method to produce an alkylene oxide polymer having a high polymerization degree on an industrial scale and with high reproducibility. The method includes the step of carrying out a polymerization reaction of an alkylene oxide in an inert hydrocarbon solvent in the presence of a zinc catalyst to produce an alkylene oxide polymer. The zinc catalyst is produced by reaction of an organozinc compound with a monohydric alcohol in an amount of 12-fold equivalent or less relative to the amount of the organozinc compound and an aliphatic polyhydric alcohol in an amount of 0.2- to 1.1-fold equivalent relative to the amount of the organozinc compound. The polymerization reaction is carried out under such a condition that the amount of the monohydric alcohol in the polymerization reaction system becomes 0.01-fold equivalent or less relative to the amount of the organozinc compound.

The present invention relates to a compound of the formula (I)

##STR00001##

for improving the tensile shear strength of hardened compositions based on silane-modified prepolymers, a composition containing a silane-functionalized prepolymer and a compound of the formula (I), a method for the production of this composition and the use of the compound of the formula (I) in adhesives, sealants, coatings and/or primers, based on silane-functionalized prepolymers and the use of this compound for the production of adhesives, sealants, coatings and/or primers based on silane-functionalized prepolymers.

The invention relates to inorganic-organic hybrid materials comprising interpenetrated organic and inorganic components, wherein the organic component comprises polymer chains formed at least in part by ring-opening polymerization of a cyclic monomer, and processes for the production thereof.

Disclosed herein is a polyalkylene oxide ester polymer with a weight average molecular weight Mw in the range of from 500 to 50,000 g/mol and a polydispersity PD in the range of from 2 to 6, including 10 to 560 ether groups and 2 to 51 ester groups that are interconnected with alkylene groups, which are significantly more biodegradable than conventional polyalkylene oxide polymers. Further disclosed herein are a method of preparing a polyalkylene oxide ester polymer and a method of using the polyalkylene oxide ester polymer.

A polymer is the reaction product of a substituted or unsubstituted 2,3-dihydrofuran, a substituted or unsubstituted 2,3-dihydropyran, or a mixture of any two or more thereof with a substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl monomer, or a mixture of any two or more thereof, in the presence of a ring-opening metathesis catalyst. In some embodiments, the substituted or unsubstituted cycloalkenyl monomer is a substituted or unsubstituted norbornene monomer.

An alkylene oxide mixture containing greater than 50% by weight ethylene oxide is continuously polymerized in the presence of a double metal cyanide polymerization catalyst and certain magnesium, Group 3-Group 15 metal or lanthanide series metal compounds. The presence of the magnesium, Group 3-Group 15 metal or lanthanide series metal compound permits the polymerization to be performed continuously without premature deactivation of the double metal cyanide catalyst.

Provided is a method to produce an alkylene oxide polymer having a high polymerization degree on an industrial scale and with high reproducibility. The method includes the step of carrying out a polymerization reaction of an alkylene oxide in an inert hydrocarbon solvent in the presence of a zinc catalyst to produce an alkylene oxide polymer. The zinc catalyst is produced by reaction of an organozinc compound with a monohydric alcohol in an amount of 12-fold equivalent or less relative to the amount of the organozinc compound and an aliphatic polyhydric alcohol in an amount of 0.2- to 1.1-fold equivalent relative to the amount of the organozinc compound. The polymerization reaction is carried out under such a condition that the amount of the monohydric alcohol in the polymerization reaction system becomes 0.01-fold equivalent or less relative to the amount of the organozinc compound.