Synthesizing carboxy-terminated polymers

Claim 1

THE PROCESS OF SYNTHESIZING CARBOXY-TERMINATED LIQUID POLYMERS FROM ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONOMERS WHICH UNDERGO ADDITION POLYMERIZATION, SAID PROCESS COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: (A) EMULSIFYING THOROUGHLY A MIXTURE COMPRISING WATER, REDUCING AGENT, EMULSIFIER, AND ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONOMER SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTNG OF BUTADIENE-1,3, ISOPRENE, HEXADIENE-2,4, CHLOROPRENE, AND MIXTURES THEREOF, WHILE MAINTAINING THE TEMPERATURE AND PRESSURE AT LEVELS WHICH MINIMIZE VAPORIZATION LOSS OF SAID UNSATURATED MONOMER, WHEREIN SAID REDUCING AGENT IS A MEMBER SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF INORGANIC WATERSOLUBLE FERROUS AND COBALTOUS SALTS; (B) ADDING TO THE EMULSION MIXTURE DEFINED IN STEP (A) WITH MIXING AND AT A UNIFORM RATE A WATER-MISCIBLE SOLUTION OF PEROXIDE OF A SATURATED CYCLIC KETONE HAVING 5 TO 7 CARBON ATOMS IN THE CARBOCYCLIC RING AND OF SUCH A QUANTITY THAT THE REDUCING AGENT IS ALWAYS IN EXCESS OF THE STOICHIOMETRIC QUANTITY REQUIRED TO REDUCE THE PEROXIDE, THE PEROXIDE THEREBY UNDERGOING REDUCTION BY THE REDUCING AGENT AS THE PEROXIDE SOLUTION IS ADDED AND THEREAFTER REARRANGEMENT TO YIELD THE CORRESPONDING ALKANOIC ACID FREE RADICALS WHICH INITIATE AND TERMINATE THE POLYMERIZATION REACTION WITH THE MONOMERS, THE RATE OF ADDING THE PEROXIDE SOLUTION BEING SUCH THAT POLYMERIZATION IS TERMINATED WITHIN A PREDETERMINED MOLECULAR WEIGHT RANGE, AND THE MOLAR RATIO OF SAID EHTYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONOMER TO SAID CYCLIC KETONE PEROXIDE BEING SUCH AS TO YIELD ENOUGH ALKANOIC FREE ACID RADICALS FROM THE LATTER TO TERMINATE THE POLYMERIZATION OF SAID ETHYLENICALLY UNSATURATED MONOMER AT AN AVERAGE MOLECULAR WEIGHT OF ABOUT 3000-5000. (C) ACIDIFYING THE RESULTING REACTION MIXTURE TO A PH OF 2.0 TO 4.5 WITH AN INORGANIC, NON-OXIDIZING MINERAL ACID; (D) RECOVERING THE PRODUCED POLYMER OF A MOLECULAR WEIGHT RANGE OF 3,000 AND 5,000.