Monomers for Polycarbonate Manufacture: Synthesis of BPA and DPC

The melt or LX process, involving the solventless transesterification of diphenyl carbonate (DPC) with bisphenol A (BPA), is the preeminent commercial non-phosgene route to bisphenol A polycarbonate. Polycarbonate purity and manufacturing cost are highly dependent on the synthetic methods used to prepare the constituent monomers. This report surveys progress in the synthesis of BPA and DPC.