Production of water-soluble aromatic resin sulfonates by sulfonating with so3 in liquid so2

Claim 1

A METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION OF WATER-SOLUBLE RESIN SULFONATES WHICH COMPRISES ADMIXING, WITH LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE, A SOLID THEREMOPLASTIC POLYMER CONTAINING IN CHEMICALLY COMBINED FORM A TOTAL OF AT LEAST 60 PERCENT BY WEIGHT OF AT LEAST ONE MONO-ALKENYL AROMATIC COMPOUND HAVING FROM 2 TO 3 CARBON ATOMS IN ITS ALKENYL GROUP, WHICH ALKENYL GROUP COMPRISES A VINYLIDENE RADICAL AND IS ATTACHED DIRECTLY TO A CARBON ATOMS OF THE AROMATIOC NUCLEUS, AND CONTAINING IN THE POLYMER MOLECULE RADICALS, SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF CARBONYL, CARBONYLOXY AND NITRILE RADICALS, THAT ARE EFFECTIVE IN SOLUBILIZING THE POLYMER WITH RESPECT TO LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE AS A MEDIUM, WHICH POLYMER CONTAINING THE SOLUBILIZING RADICALS IS CAPABLE OF BEING DISPERSED BY STIRRING IN 19 TIMES ITS WEIGHT OF LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE TO FORM A TRUE TO COLLOIDAL SOLUTION THAT IOS CLEAR TO CLOUDY IN APPEARANCE AND IOS FREE OF A DISTINCT SEPARATE LAYER AND IS ALSO FREE OF A PRECIPITATE OF RESINOUS MATERIAL, FORMING SUCH SOLUTION OF THE POLYMER IN THE LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE, AND MIXING WITH THE SOLUTION AT LEAST 0.7 MOLECULAR EQUIVALENT OF SULFUR TRIOXIDE PER MOLECULAR EQUILVALENT OF ALKENYL AROMATIC COMPOUND CHEMICALLY COMBINED IN THE RESIN WHILE MAINTAINING THE MIXTURE AT A REACTION TEMPERATURE NOT HIGHER THAN 40*C.

Claim 2

A METHOD FOR THE PRODUCTION OF WATER-SOLUBLE RESIN SULFONATES WHICH COMPRISES ADMIXING, WITH LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE, A SOLID THEREMOPLASTIC POLYMER CONTAINING IN CHEMICALLY COMBINED FORM A TOTAL OF AT LEAST 60 PERCENT BY WEIGHT OF AT LEAST ONE MONO-ALKENYL AROMATIC COMPOUND HAVING FROM 2 TO 3 CARBON ATOMS IN ITS ALKENYL GROUP, WHICH ALKENYL GROUP COMPRISES A VINYLIDENE RADICAL AND IS ATTACHED DIRECTLY TO A CARBON ATOMS OF THE AROMATIOC NUCLEUS, AND CONTAINING IN THE POLYMER MOLECULE RADICALS, SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF CARBONYL, CARBONYLOXY AND NITRILE RADICALS, THAT ARE EFFECTIVE IN SOLUBILIZING THE POLYMER WITH RESPECT TO LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE AS A MEDIUM, WHICH POLYMER CONTAINING THE SOLUBILIZING RADICALS IS CAPABLE OF BEING DISPERSED BY STIRRING IN 19 TIMES ITS WEIGHT OF LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE TO FORM A TRUE TO COLLOIDAL SOLUTION THAT IOS CLEAR TO CLOUDY IN APPEARANCE AND IOS FREE OF A DISTINCT SEPARATE LAYER AND IS ALSO FREE OF A PRECIPITATE OF RESINOUS MATERIAL, FORMING SUCH SOLUTION OF THE POLYMER IN THE LIQUID SULFUR DIOXIDE, AND MIXING WITH THE SOLUTION AT LEAST 0.7 MOLECULAR EQUIVALENT OF SULFUR TRIOXIDE PER MOLECULAR EQUILVALENT OF ALKENYL AROMATIC COMPOUND CHEMICALLY COMBINED IN THE RESIN WHILE MAINTAINING THE MIXTURE AT A REACTION TEMPERATURE NOT HIGHER THAN 40*C.