- published: 16 Mar 2007
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Polycarbonates, known by the trademarked names Lexan, Makrolon, Makroclear and others, are a particular group of thermoplastic polymers. They are easily worked, molded, and thermoformed. Because of these properties, polycarbonates find many applications. Polycarbonates do not have a unique plastic identification code and are identified as Other, 7.
Polycarbonates received their name because they are polymers containing carbonate groups (–O–(C=O)–O–). Most polycarbonates of commercial interest are derived from rigid monomers. A balance of useful features including temperature resistance, impact resistance and optical properties position polycarbonates between commodity plastics and engineering plastics.
The main polycarbonate material is produced by the reaction of bisphenol A and phosgene COCl2. The overall reaction can be written as follows:
The first step of the synthesis involves treatment of bisphenol A with sodium hydroxide, which deprotonates the hydroxyl groups of the bisphenol A.
The diphenoxide ((NaOC6H4)2CMe2) reacts with phosgene to give a chloroformate, which subsequently is attacked by another phenoxide. The net reaction from the diphenoxide is: