SBIR Phase I: Pilot-Scale Production of Stereoblock Polypropylene (sbPP) Thermoplastic Elastomers

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目旨在展示成功的试点。立体嵌段聚丙烯（sbPP）热塑性弹性体的规模化生产，这种弹性体可以通过对可逆过程的相对速率施加外部控制的能力，以程序化的方式在无限范围内生产不同的基本形式，而可逆过程的相对速率与繁殖速度相竞争。研究工作将包括调查这些过程的速度，以便为生产sbPP材料制定一种商业上可行的程序。预期的结果是，sbPP热塑性弹性体的商业相关量（1千吨）可以生产出具有定制物理性能的，作为现有商业材料在技术上可行的替代品。这个项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是大的——&amp；#8208；sbPP热塑性弹性体的规模生产（1千吨），作为现有商业材料的技术替代品，将有助于利用廉价丙烯单体的可用性增加，这是最近石化工业从原油转向丰富的北美天然气的产物。这种转变极大地加剧了成本波动和全球原油短缺，这些原油来源于高碳编号的单体，这些单体历来用于热塑性弹性体的商业生产。该项目既定目标的成功实现将有助于提供具有高化学效率的各种不同等级的高纯度sbPP材料，这些材料具有量身定制的性能，可以为粘合剂，薄膜包装和医疗市场带来变革。在这个项目中开发的程序也将促进未来使用相同催化剂技术的更广泛的丙烯基聚合物的商业化生产。社会将进一步受益于引入一种更环保和可持续的化学技术，为目前的商业热塑性弹性体提供一种替代方案。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project seeks to demonstrate successful pilot‐scale production of stereoblock polypropene (sbPP) thermoplastic elastomers that can be produced, in programmed fashion, over an unlimited range of different fundamental forms by virtue of the ability to exert external control over the relative rates of reversible processes that are competitive with the rate of propagation. The research effort will involve investigation into the rate of these processes in order to develop a commercially viable procedure for the production of sbPP materials. The anticipated result is that commercially relevant volumes ( 1 kiloton)of sbPP thermoplastic elastomers can be produced with tailored physical properties as technologically viable replacements for existing commercial materials. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is that the large-­‐scale (1 kiloton) production of sbPP thermoplastic elastomers as technological replacements for existing commercial materials will serve to capitalize on the increased availability of inexpensive propylene monomer that is the product of a recent shift by the petrochemical industry from crude oil to abundant North American natural gas. This shift has contributed significantly to increased cost volatility and global shortages of crude oil derived higher carbon-­numbered monomers that have been historically utilized for the commercial production of thermoplastic elastomers. Successful realization of the stated goals of this project will serve to deliver, with high chemical efficiency, a variety of different grades of high purity sbPP materials with tailored properties that can be transformational for the adhesives, film-packaging and medical markets. The procedures developed during this project will also facilitate future commercial production of a wider range of propylene based polymers utilizing the same catalyst technology. Society will further benefit from the introduction of a more environmentally benign andsustainable chemical technology that provides an alternative to current commercial thermoplastic elastomers.