Abstract:
Spinning solutions of polyacrylonitrile or an interpolymer containing a preponderant proportion of acrylonitrile are made by polymerizing the acrylonitrile, optionally containing a minor proportion of an interpolymerizable monomeric material, in an organic solvent, e.g. carbon tetrachloride or 1,2-dichloroethane, which dissolves the monomer but not the polymer, adding after the polymerization is completed a solvent which dissolves the polymer and removing the organic solvent which dissolves the monomer but not the polymer. In the example acrylonitrile and methyl acrylate are interpolymerized in solution in carbon tetrachloride with azoisobutyronitrile as catalyst, dimethyl formamide is added to the reaction mixture and the carbon tetrachloride distilled off under reduced pressure.