Development and Understanding of ‘old’ and ‘new’ initiators for cationic polymerization

Butyl Rubber has become one of the most important polymers in the modern world, impacting everyone’s daily lives. Interestingly, the processes to make butyl rubber can be convoluted and while they are effective, it makes it difficult to fine tune the production to systematically improve yields. This project will use newly developed methods in our lab to explore this process in order to better elucidate the reaction in order to optimize the reaction conditions and develop new catalysts for the synthesis of butyl rubber. As a global leader in butyl rubber production, Arlanxeo will greatly benefit from the knowledge generated from this project, allowing them to more efficiently make butyl rubber, increasing the yields and reducing their energy requirements.

Faculty Supervisor:

Christopher Caputo

Student:

Joshua Gaffen

Partner:

Arlanxeo Canada Inc.

Discipline:

Chemistry

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

York University