Repurposing HFC-125 to tetrafluoroethylene: A step toward a more sustainable fluoropolymer feedstock strategy

IF 4.6 2区综合性期刊 Q1 MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCES

iScience Pub Date : 2025-05-03 DOI:10.1016/j.isci.2025.112580

Hiroto Iwasaki , Naoyuki Hoshiya , Yosuke Kishikawa , Jorge Escorihuela , Norio Shibata

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

The urgency to reduce hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) emissions, particularly HFC-125 (pentafluoroethane, CF₃CF₂H), has driven efforts to develop sustainable alternatives. Herein, we present a method for converting HFC-125 into tetrafluoroethylene (TFE), an industrially valuable monomer for fluoropolymer production. Our approach uses potassium hexamethyldisilazide (KHMDS), optimizing reaction conditions at −50°C to achieve high TFE yields without any observable byproducts. This low-temperature method offers a safer and more sustainable alternative to traditional high-temperature processes for TFE production, which involve hazardous byproducts and complex handling. We also demonstrated that various chemical reactions using freshly generated TFE, including thiol addition, trifluorovinylation, radical addition, amination, alcohol addition, and polymerization, can be performed, extending the utility of this approach. Moreover, a continuous flow process for the conversion of HFC-125 to TFE at room temperature was achieved without cryogenic equipment. This dual-purpose solution addresses both environmental sustainability of fluorochemicals and the growing demand for fluoropolymers in various industries.

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将HFC-125重新用于四氟乙烯：朝着更可持续的含氟聚合物原料战略迈出的一步

减少氢氟碳化合物（HFC）排放的紧迫性，特别是减少HFC-125（五氟乙烷，CF3CF2H）的紧迫性，推动了开发可持续替代品的努力。在此，我们提出了一种将HFC-125转化为四氟乙烯（TFE）的方法，TFE是一种具有工业价值的含氟聚合物生产单体。我们的方法使用六甲基二氮化钾（KHMDS），优化反应条件，在- 50°C下获得高TFE产率，没有任何可观察到的副产物。这种低温方法为TFE生产提供了一种更安全、更可持续的替代方法，传统的高温工艺涉及危险副产品和复杂的处理。我们还证明了使用新生成的TFE可以进行各种化学反应，包括硫醇加成、三氟乙烯化、自由基加成、胺化、醇加成和聚合，从而扩展了该方法的效用。此外，在没有低温设备的情况下，实现了室温下HFC-125转化为TFE的连续流过程。这种双重用途的解决方案既解决了含氟化学品的环境可持续性问题，也满足了各个行业对含氟聚合物日益增长的需求。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

iScience Multidisciplinary-Multidisciplinary

CiteScore

7.20

自引率

1.70%

发文量

1972

审稿时长

6 weeks

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