Polyamidation of a diamine-phenol compound in ionic liquid: preparation and properties of polyamides/epoxide-functionalized γ-Al₂O₃ composites

This work reports selective polyamidation of a diamine-phenol compound (3) in an ionic liquid (IL) and preparation of transparent composites from the obtained high performance polyamides (PA)s and modified γ-Al₂O₃ nanoparticles (mγNAl). The PAs were prepared selectively from polycondensation of compound 3 with several dicarboxylic acids in the mixture of (IL)/triphenylphophite(TPP). The fluorescent PAs (λ_em = 500 nm) exhibited glass transition (T_g) and 10 % weight loss temperatures (T_10%) in the range of 188–325 °C and 447–511 °C, respectively. The structurally intercalated composites (NCPA)s were prepared from PAs and epoxide-functionalized γ-Al₂O₃ (mγNAl) via solution blending process. The strong chemical bonding between mγNAl and PA chains contributed to the enhanced thermal and mechanical properties of the composites. Also, the photoluminescence intensity increased with increasing mγNAl content. The PAs and composites were also tested for their extraction capability for environmentally deleterious metal ions from aqueous solutions either individually or in the mixture.