Aqueous process for the quantitative conversion of polyepichlorohydrin to glycidyl azide polymer

Claim 1

An aqueous process for the quantitative conversion of polyepichlorohydrin (PECH) to glycidyl azide polymer (GAP), comprises the steps of: combining said PECH and an ionic azide in a mixture of water and a phase transfer catalyst capable of the quantitative conversion of PECH to GAP; reacting said PECH and said ionic azide in said aqueous mixture while agitating said mixture at a temperature between about 25° C. and about 100° C., and wherein said aqueous mixture is maintained under a nitrogen purged environment; and recovering said GAP from said aqueous mixture by separating the aqueous layer from the product layer; water-washing said product layer to remove any inorganic salts remaining in the product layer; alcohol-washing said water-washed product layer so as to remove said phase transfer catalyst; dissolving said alcohol-washed product layer in a low-boiling, non-polar solvent; purifying said dissolved product layer by passing it through adsorbents capable of removing impurities; and concentrating said purified product layer so as to remove said low-boiling non-polar solvent.