Preparation of chlorosulfonated polyethylene by liquid-solid method and comparison with industrial products

The examination of chlorosulfonated polyethylene (CSM) prepared by a liquid-solid bulk reaction with sulfonyl chloride (SO₂Cl₂) is presented in this article. The basic structure of liquid-solid method CSM was compared with FT-IR and ¹H-NMR. The thermal stability of liquid-solid method CSM is better than that of CPE6000 due to the presence of chlorosulfonyl group in CSM molecule, while the distribution of chlorine is deteriorating. Compared with the industrial product CSM40 prepared by the solution method, the liquid-solid method CSM possessses higher tensile strength and elongation at break. The fact that the solubility of HDPE in solvent is not considered in the preparation of CSM by liquid-solid method, and HDPE with higher molecular weight and narrower molecular weight distribution could be selected. DSC and DMA tests showed that the liquid-solid method CSM T_g was lower and the modulus was higher, and the thermal stability wss quite similar. CSM prepared by liquid-solid method meets the requirements of GB/T 30920–2014. This article provides a new idea for the industrial production of chlorosulfonated polyethylene.