CA1085081A

CA1085081A - Polyphenylene ether composition

Info

Publication number: CA1085081A
Application number: CA274,754A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Visvaldis Abolins; Gim F. Lee, Jr.
Original assignee: General Electric Co
Current assignee: General Electric Co
Priority date: 1976-03-29
Filing date: 1977-03-25
Publication date: 1980-09-02
Also published as: DE2713430A1; GB1523265A; FR2346406A1; US4131598A; FR2346406B1; AU513431B2; MX144776A; JPS6125743B2; BR7701905A; NL7703068A; AU2364577A; JPS52128947A

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
Polyphenylene ether compositions are disclosed which comprise a polyphenylene ether resin and a copolymer of a vinyl aromatic compound and an .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride.

Description

This invention relates to thermoplastic compositions and more particularly to polyphenylene ether resin compositions.
The term "polyphenylene ether resin" includes a family of polymers well known to those skilled in the art. They are made by a variety of catalytic and non-catalytic processes from the corresponding phenols or reaction deriva-tives thereof. By way of illustration, certain of the fol-lowing polyphenylene ethers are discussed in Hay, U.S.

Patents 3,306,874 and 3,306,875 dated February 28, 1976 and in Stamatoff, U. S. Patents 3,257,357 and 3,257,358 dated June 21, 1966. Also, the Bennett and Cooper U.S. Patents, 3,639,656 dated February 1, 1972, 3,642,699 dated Feb/15/72 and 3,661,848 dated May 9, 1972 describe processes for the preparation of polyphenylene ethers. In the Hay U.S.
patents, the polyphenylene ethers are prepared by an oxid-ative coupling reaction comprising passing an oxygen-contain-ing gas through a reaction solution of a phenol and a metal-amine catalyst.

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~085081 Other disclosures relating to processes using metal-amine catalysts are found in Bussink et al, U.S. 3,337,499;
Blanchard et al, U.S. 3,219,626; Laakso et al, U.S. 3,342,892;
Borman, U.S. 3,344,166; Hori et al, U.S. 3,384,619; Faurote et al, U.S. 3,440,217; and disclosures relating to metal ~ :
based catalysts which do not include amines, are well known from patents such as Wieden et al, U.S. 3,442,885 (copper am-idines); Nakashio et al, U.S. 3,573,257 (metal-alcoholate or phenolate); Kobayashi et al, U.S. 3,455,880 (cobalt chelates);
and the like. In the Stamstoff patents, the polyphenylene ethers are produced by reacting the corresponding phenolate ~-ion with an initiator, such as a peroxy acid salt, an acid peroxide, a hypohalite, and the like, in the presence of a complexing agent. Disclosures relating to non-catalytic processes, such as oxidation with lead dioxide, silver oxide, , etc., are described in Price et al, U.S. 3,382,212.
. .
The Cizek patent, U.S. 3,383,435, discloses com-positions of polyphenylene ether resins and styrene resins.
The thermoplastic composition disclosed by Cizek may include a rubber-modified styrene resin, as well as crystal poly-styrene.
It has now been surprisingly discovered that when the conventional polystyrene and rubber-modified polystyrene resins in these polyphenylene ether compositions are replaced with a copolymer of a vinyl aromatic compound and an ,, i : , . .

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unsaturated cyclic anhydride, the heat distortion temperature

2 of the polyphenylene ether composition, as well as other

3 physical properties, is dramatically increased.

Summary of the Invention 6 Accordingly, it is one object of the present in-7 vention to provide an improved polyphenylene ether composi-8 tion.
Another object of this invention is to provide a polyphenylene ether composition having improved physical 11 properties in comparison with conventional polyphenylene 12 ether/polystyrene compositions 13 Still another object of the present invention is 14 to provide a polyphenylene ether resin composition having an improved heat distortion temperature in comparison with con-16 ventional polyphenylene ether resin/polystyrene compositions.
17 These and other objects are accomplished herein 18 by providing a thermoplastic composition comprising an in-19 timate admixture of:
29 (a) a polyphenylene ether resin, and 21 (b) a copolymer of a vinyl aromatic compound and 22 an ~ ~ -unsaturated cyclic anhydride.

24 Detailed Description of the Invention Illustrative of the polyphenylene ethers embraced 26 herein are those having the repeating structural unit of the 27 formula:

_ 3 _ _ . .. ,. ._ . .

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7 wherein the oxygen ether atom of one unit is connected to the 8 benzene nucleus of the next adjoining unit, n is a positive 9 integer and is at least 50 and each Q is a monovalent sùb-stituent selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, 11 halogen, hydrocarbon radicals free of a tertiary~-carbon 12 atom, halohydrocarbon radicals having at least two carbon 13 atoms between the halogen atom and phenyl nucleus and being 14 free of a tertiaryCX carbon atom, hydrocarbonoxy radicals be-~
ing free of a tertiary ~-carbon atom, and halohydrocarbonoxy 16 radicals having at least 2 carbon atoms between the halogen -17 and phenyl nucleus and being free of a tertiary Oc-carbon 18 atom. Preferred polyphenylene ether resins for purposes 19 of this invention are those having alkyl substitution in the two positions ortho to the oxygen ether atom 21 An especially preferred polyphenylene ether resin 22 component herein is poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene) ether.
23 The vinyl aromatic compound-~,~-unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymers embraced within the scope of this inven-tion include unmodified copolymers, i~e., non-rubber-modified copolymers, as well as the hi~h impac~ rubber-modified copoly-mers. In general, the copolymers o this invention are pre-

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pared by conventional bulk solution or emulsion techniques using free-radical initiation. For example, styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers can be obtained by simply reacting the two monomers, i.e., styrene and maleic anhydride, at 50C ~ ~ :
in the presence of benzoyl peroxide. The rate of polymer-ization may be better controlled if a solvent such as ace-tone, benzene or xylene is used. Procedures for the pre-paration of vinyl aromatic/ ~ , ~unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymers may also be found in U. S. Patent No. 2,971,939 dated February 14, 1961, U. S . 3,336,267 dated August 15,1967, and U. S. 2,769,804 dated November 6, 1956. The rubber modified copolymers are described in Netherlands 7,212,714.
The vinyl aromatic compound component from which the copolymer is formed may be derived from compounds of the formula:
, i .

' CR = CHR
R5~ R3 R6 ~ --- R4 wherein Rl and R2 are selected from the group consisting of lower alkyl or alkenyl groups of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms and hydrogen; R3 and R4 are selected from the group consist-'1 ing of chloro, bromo, hydrogen and lower alkyl of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms; R5 and R6 are selected from the group con-sisting of hydrogen and lower alkyl and alkenyl groups of `:

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1 from 1 to 6 carbon atoms or R5 and R6 may be concatenated to-2 gether with hydrocarbyl groups to form a naphthyl group.
These compounds are free of any substituent that has a ter-4 tiary carbon atom. Styrene is the preferred vinyl aromatic compound.
The ~,~ -unsaturated cyclic anhydrides from which 7 the copolymers herein are formed may be represented by the 8 formula:
9 . .

R8 -CH =C - (CH2)m - R
ll wherein R8 and R9 ta~en together represent a -CO C-linkage, 12 R10 is hydrogen, vinyl, alkyl or alkenyl of 1-12 carbon atoms 13 and m is a number from 0 to about 10. Thec<,~-unsaturated cyc-14 lic anhydrides include maleic anhydride, citraconic anhydride, -itaconic anhydride, aconitic anhydride and the like. The pre-16 ferred CX,~-unsaturated cyclic anhydride is maleic anhydride.
17 The rubber employed in preparing the rubber-modified 18 copolymers of a vinyl aromatic compound and anC~,~ -unsat-l9 urated cyclic anhydride may be a polybutadiene rubber, butyl rubber, styrene-butadiene rubber, acrylonitrile rubber, 21 ethylene-propylene copolymers, natural rubber, EPDM rubbers 22 and the like.
23 These copolymers may comprise 40 to 1 parts by weight 24 of the C~, ~-unsaturated cyclic anhydride from 60 to 99 parts by weight of a vinyl aromatic compound and from 0 to 25 parts 26 by weight of rubber. The preferred polymers will contain 27 about 25-5 parts by weight of theCX,~ -unsaturated cyclic __.... . .. , .. .. _.. _ _ . ._ _ ,,._ . . ~ _ .

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~; 1 anhydride, 75-95 parts by weight of the vinyl aromatic com-, 2 pound and 10 parts by weight of rubber.
, 3 Typical commercially available vinyl aromatic/~,~ -unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymer products include the SMA resins, sold by Sinclair Petrochemicals, Inc., Lytron and Stymer S resins sold by Monsanto Chemical Company and Dylar 7 resins sold by Sinclair/Koppers Company.
8 More particularly, the SMA resins are low molecular weight styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers, ranging in mole-cular weight from 700 to about 1900. The Lytron resins are I~ 11 partially esterified styrene-maleic anhydride copolymers 12 ranging in molecular weight from 1500 to about 50,000. The 13 Stymer S resins are sodium salts of styrene-maleic anhydride , copolymer.
A preferred unmodified vinyl aromatic- ~ -unsat-` 16 urated cyclic anhydride copolymer useful herein is Dylar!;
; 17 232. Dylark 232 is sold by the Sinclair-Koppers Company 18 and is a styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer containing about : lla/o maleic anhydride. A preferred rubber-modified vinyl aromatic- ~, ~-cyclic anhydride copolymer useful herein is ; 21 Dylark 240 which is also available from Sinclair-Koppers and 22 is a high impact styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer contain-23 ing 9-10% rubber and 9% maleic anhydride.
24 : The polyphenylene ether resin and the vinyl aromatic/
~ unsaturated cyclic anhydride resins described hereinabove 26 are combinable with each other in all proportions. Conse-27 quently, compositions comprising from 1 to 99 parts by weight ; ~ 7 ~
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l ether and ~rom 99 to 1 parts, by weight, vinyl aromatic/~, ; 2 ~-unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymer are included within -i the scope of this invention More particularly, compositions 4 containing from about 30 to 85 parts polyphenylene ether and from 70 to 15 parts copolymer exhibit the best overall com-6 bination of properties.
7 The compositions of the present invention may also 8 include reinforcing fillers, such as aluminum, iron or nickel, and the like, and non-metals such as carbon filaments, sili-cates, such as aluminum silicate, asbestos, titanium dioxide, 11 zinc oxide, zinc sulfide, potassium titanate and titanate 12 whiskers, glass flakes and glass fibers. Glass fibers are 13 particularly preferred herein.
14 These reinforcing fillers can be present in amounts ranging from about 1 to about 80% by weight of the total com-16 position. For best results, however, the fillers are pref-17 erably present in amounts ranging from about 10 to about 18 40% by weight of the total compositions.
19 A particularly preferred embodiment of this inven-tion is to provide flame retardant thermoplastlc composi-21 tions, as defined above, by modifying the composition to 22 include a flame-retardant additive in a minor proportion 23 but in an amount at least sufficient to render the composi-- 24 tion non-burning or self-extinguishing. Any of the well-known flame-retardants may be used herein. Particularly 27 preferred flame retardants include triphenylphosphat~

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1 ¦ The composition of the present invention may be 2 l prepared in any conventional manner. For example, a pre-3 ¦ ferred method comprises mixing the polymers in powder or 4 granular form, extruding the mixture into strar.ds, chopping the strands into pellets and molding the pellets into the desired shape.
7 The improved compositions of this invention are 8 useful for all purposes for which polyphenylene ether com-positions have heretofore been used. For example, they may be employed as films, fibers and molding compositions.
11 The following examples are given so that those 12 skilled in the art may better know how to practice the pres-13 ent invention. These examples are given by way of illus-; 14 tration only and are not to be construed as limiting in any way.

Example I

18 35 parts by weight of poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phen-19 ylene) ether having an intrinsic viscosity of about 0.5 at 25C in chloroform (PPO, General Electric Co.) is`intimately 21 admixed with 65 parts by weight of Dylark 240, high impact 22 grade (a rubber-modified styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer 23 containing 9% maleic anhydride and 9-10% rubber), in a blend-24 er. The mixture is blended, extruded, and the extruded strands are chopped into pellets. The pellets are molded 26 into test specimens on a molding machine.

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¦ Example II

j I The following composition is prepared similsrly ;4 ¦ to the procedure of Example I.
Ingredient Parts by Weight 6 poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)ether* 35 7 Dylark 240 65 8 triphenylphosphate 9 . g polyethylene M-710 (process aid) 1.5 tridecylphosphite (stabilizer) 0.5 11 zinc sulfide 0.15 ' 12 zinc oxide 0,15 -13 (PP0, General Electric Company) , 14 Test specimens of this composition are found to ' have the following physical properties:
16 Tensile Strength Yield (psi) 8900 . .
Elongation (%) 32 18 Izod Impact Strength (ft.lb./in.n) 2.6 -19 Gardner Impact Strength (in. lb.) 56 Heat Distortion Temperature (F) 210 21 UL-94 (sec.) 12 812 `~ 22 20, 32, l9 23 Comparati~e Exam~le A

24 The following composition is prepared similarly to the procedure set forth in Example I.

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1 Ingredient Parts by Wei~ht 2 poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)ether (PP0) 35 3 rubber-modiried, high im?act styrene resin* 65 triphenylphosphate 7 polyethylene M-710 1.5 tridecylphosphite 0,5 7 zinc sulfide 0,15 zinc oxide 0.15 9 *Foster Grant 834 high impact polystyrene t8% polybutadiene in the form of a polystyrene grafted dispersion of elasto-11 meric particles) 12 Test specimens of this composition are found to 13 have the following physical properties:
14 Tensile Strength Yield (psi) 6500 Elongation (%) 67 - 16 Izod Impact Strength (ft. lb./in. n ) 5 0 17 Gardner Impact Strength (in.lb,) 202 18 Heat Distortion Temperature (F) 196 19 UL-94 (sec ) 52 1827 4, 25, 26 21 By comparing the data of Example II with Example 22 A, it can be readily appreciated that by substituting the rubber-modified high impact styrene resin of the prior art 24 with the vinyl aromatic compound- C~ ~-unsaturated cyclic an-hydride copolymer of this invention, a dramatic increase in th 26 heat distortion temperature of the polyphenylene ether resin 27 composition is realized.

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1 Example III
The following composition is prepared similarly to the procedure of Example I.

In~redient Parts by Weight 6 poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)ether resin (PP0) 35 . Dylark 240 65 -. Triphenylphosphate 10 8 Polyethylene M-710 1,5 Tridecylphosphite 0,5 : 11 Zinc sulfide 0.15 Zinc oxide 0.15 12 .
l 13 Test specimens of this composition are found to .. 14 have the follor.~ing physical properties:
.
:~ 16 Tensile strength yield (psi.) 8900 ' 17 Elongation (%) 29 .
.` 18 Izod Impact Strength (ft,lb./in.n.) 2.8 ,; Gardner Impact Strength (in lb.) 52 .

Heat Distortion Temperature (F) 208 : UL-94 (sec.) 2 4 10 ; 21 14, 14, 120 -:. 2~ . .
. 23 .
. Example IV and Co~ arative Example B

;` The following compositions are prepared similarly 26 to the procedure of ~xample I.

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Example IV Example B
In~redient (parts by wei~ht) (parts by wei,~ht 2 poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-; phenylene) ether resin (pP0) 50 50 4 Foster Grant (FG) 834 polystyrene -- 50 Si, Dylark 240 50 --6 Triphenylphosphate 3,0 3,0 ~, 7 Tridecylphosphite 0,5 0,5 -~ 8 Polyethylene M-710 1,5 1,5 Zinc oxide 0,15 0,15 Zinc sulfide 0,15 0,15 ~` 11 Titanium dioxide 5,0 5,0 Physical Properties 13 Tensile Strength Yield(psi) 11,400 9,400 Tensile Strength Ult, (psi) 8,900 8,500 ~longation (%) 26 59 Flexural Strength (psi) 18,160 13,770 18 Flexural Modulus (psi) 463,400 326,200 Notch Izod Impact Str.
19 (ft,lb,/in,n,) 2,9 3,5 ~ Heat Distortion Temp, ~F) 261 242 ¦ Gloss60 53 22 ¦ Yellowness Index 21,2 22.0 23 ¦ Flammability UL94, 1/16" fails fails 24 l By comparing the data in Examples IV with comparative Example B, it can be readily appreciaced by 26 ¦ those skilled in the art that the substitution of the vinyl 27 ¦ aromatic compound~ unsaturated cyclic anhydride ~ -13- _ .. .. __,.

~-395 ~ ~ i 108508~
.

copolymer of this invention (Dylark 240) for the rubber-2modified styrene resin of the prior ~rt (FG834) results 3in ~ dramatic increase of the heat distortion temperature, . 4higher stiffness (flexural modulus), higher strength and 5gloss in the polyphenylene ether resin composition.

7 Example V

8The following composition is prepared similarly to Example 1.

Ing~edient Parts by Weight 11 poly(2,6-dirnethyl-1,4-phenyleneethe~ resin(PP0) 35 12 Dylark 240 65 13 triphenylphosphate 7,0 14 tridecylphosphite 0 5 Polyethylene M-710 1.5 16 Zinc oxide ~ 0.15 17 Zinc sulfide 0.15 18 titanium dioxide 5 0 19 Physical Properties Tensile Strength Yield (psi) 9,900 21 Tensile Strength Ult (psi) 7,600 22 Elongation (%) 26 23 Flexural Strength (psi) 14,150 24 Flexural Modulus (psi) 407,800 Notch Izod Impact Str. (ft.lb./~n n.) 2.3 ` 26 Heat Distortion Temp. (F) 225 27 Gloss 58 28 Yello~ness Index 19.7 29 Flammability UL 94. 1/16" _ , ~ .... . _ . . . .

'-39~ _ ` 1085081 ,:~
Example VI and Comparative Exam~le C
1 The foIlowing compositions are prepared similarly to the procedure of Example 1:
3 In~redient Example VI ComParative Example C
4 (parts by weight) (parts by weight) _ poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4 phenylene) ether resin (PPO) 45 45 6 Foster Grant 834 polystyrene -- 55 Dylark 240 55 --triphenyl phosphate -- --g tridecylphosphite 1.0 1.0 Polyethylene M-710 1.5 1.5 11 Z~nc Oxide 0.15 0,15 12 Zinc Sulfide 0.15 0.15 3 PhYsical Pro~erties 14 Tensile Strength yield (psi)10,500 8,300 Tensile Strength Ult. (psi)8,300 7,900 16 Elongation (%) ~ 32 61 17 Flexural Strength (psi)17,000 12,200 18 Flexural Modulus (psi)418,700 331,000 19 Notch Izod Impact Strength (ft.lb,/in.n) 2.4 3.2 Heat Distortion Temperature 21 (F) 264 246 22 Gloss 50.6* 42.9*
23 Yellowness 65.2 59.7 24 *0,25 in. x 2.5 in. x 2.5 in. sample, By comparing Example VI with Example C, it can be readily 26 appreciated that substitution of Dylark 240 for Foster Grant's 27 834 results in almost 20F higher heat distortion temperature 28 as well as other improved physical properties.
_ 15 -.- . ~_ . . . . ~ , `~-395 1085~81 , .' ~.
1 Examples VII, VIII and Comparative Exam~le D
~ 2 The following examples are prepared similarly to ; 3 Example I
4 Comparative Example VII Example VIII
Example D (parts by (parts by S Ingredient (parts by wt,) weight) weight~
6 PP 35 35 __ -7 FG834 polystyrene45 -- --8 Dylark 240 -- 45 80 497 BB glass fibers* 20 20 20 Physical Properties ` 11 Tensile Str. Ult.
12 (psi) 13,100 12,400 10,400 Elongation (%) 6 5 4 Flexural Strength 14 (psi) 21,600 20,500 17,400 i~ 15 Flexural Modulus (psi) 679,700 784,200 817,600 16 Unnotch Izod Imp.
17 Str.(ft.lb.tin.)7.7 5.5 4,5 ` 18 Notch Izod Imp.Str.
(ft.lb./in.n.) 1.9 1.3 1.3 Heat Distortion Temp.
(F) 275 288 238 ` 22 23 ~ ¦ *Chop glass reinforcing fibers ,~ 26 ' ' ~ _ ,, r .. . . _ . _ ; 1085081 ,.,, 1 Examples IX and X and Comparative Example E
.
2 The following Examples are prepared similarly to Example I.
4 Comparative Example IX Example X
Example E (parts by(parts by Ingredient (parts by_wt.) wei~ht) weight ., 6 PP 35 35 __ 7 FG834 polystyrene 45 -- --8 Dylark 232* -- 45 80 9 497 BB glass fibers20 20 20 * styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer containing 11% maleic 11 anhydride 12 Physical Properties 13 Tensile Str. Ult.
14 (psi) 13,100 14,200 11,000 Elongation (%) 6 4 3 Flexural Strength 6 (psi) 21,600 22,900 18,300 17 Flexural ~odulus 18 (psi) 679,700 ~83,000 888,300 Unnotch Izod Imp.
; str.(ft,lb./in.)7,7 5.2 4,1 Notch Izod Imp. Str.
2] (ft.lb./in.n.) 1.9 1.2 1,1 Heat Distortion Tem~.
22 (F) 275 290 236 24 By comparing Examples VII - X with Comparative Examples D and E, it can be readily appreciated that the 26 compositions of this invention offer superior physical prop-27 erties, particularly superior heat distortion temperatures.
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Furthermore, while some of the data hereinabove 2 may indicate that some of the compositions fail the stringent 3 UL-94 flammability tests, those skilled in the art will 4 recognize that these compositions are nonetheless flame-retardant according to other standards.
Obviously, other modifications and variations of the present invention are poss~ble in light of the above 8 teachings. For example, additives, other than those g already mentioned, such as plasticizers and pigments, may also be included in the present compositions. It is 11 therefore to be understood that changes may be made in the 12 particular embodiments of the invention described which are 13 within the full intended scope of the invention as defined 14 by the appended claims.
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Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A thermoplastic composition comprising (a) a polyphenylene ether resin; and (b) a copolymer of a vinyl aromatic compound and an .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride.

2. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein the polyphenylene ether resin is of the formula:

wherein the oxygen ether atom of one unit is connected to the benzene nucleus of the next adjoining unit, n is a posi-tive integer and is at least 50, and each Q is a monovalent substituent selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, halogen, hydrocarbon radicals free of tertiary .alpha.-carbon atoms, halohydrocarbon radicals having at least two carbon atoms between the halogen atom and phenyl nucleus and being free of a tertiary .alpha.-carbon atom, hydrocarbonoxy radicals be-ing free of a tertiary .alpha.-carbon atom and halohydrocarbonoxy radicals having at least two carbon atoms between the halogen atom and phenyl nucleus and being free of a tertiary .alpha.-carbon atom.

3. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein said vinyl aromatic compound is derived from the formula wherein R1 and R2 are selected from the group consisting of lower alkyl or alkenyl groups of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms and hydrogen; R3 and R4 are selected from the group consist-ing of chloro, bromo, hydrogen and lower alkyl of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms; R5 and R6 are selected from the group con-sisting of hydrogen and lower alkyl and alkenyl groups of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms or R5 and R6 may be concatenated together with hydrocarbyl groups to form a naphthyl group, said compounds being free of any substituent that has a ter-tiary carbon atom; and wherein said .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride is represented by the formula:

wherein R8 and R9 taken together represent a -? O ?- linkage, R10 is hydrogen, vinyl, alkyl or alkenyl of 1-12 carbon atoms, and m is a number from 0 to 10.

4. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein the said copolymer is a rubber-modified vinyl aromatic/.alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymer.

5. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein said thermoplastic composition contains from about 1 to about 99 parts by weight of said polyphenylene ether resin and from about 99 to about 1 parts by weight of said copolymer.

6. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein said thermoplastic composition contains from about 30 to about 60 parts by weight polyphenylene ether resin and from about 40 to about 70 parts by weight said copolymer

7. The composition as defined in Claim 1 wherein the polyphenylene ether is poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)ether.

8. The composition as defined in Claim 1 which further comprises a filler.

9. The composition as defined in Claim 1 which further comprises a flame retardant additive.

10. The composition as defined in Claim 1 which further comprises a filler and a flame-retardant additive.

11. A thermoplastic composition comprising:
(a) a polyphenylene ether resin; and (b) a rubber-modified vinyl aromatic compound- .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride copolymer.

12. The composition as defined in claim 11 wherein said vinyl aromatic compound is derived from the formula wherein R1 and R2 are selected from the group consisting of lower alkyl or alkenyl groups of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms and hydrogen; R3 and R4 are selected from the group consisting of chloro, bromo, hydrogen and lower alkyl of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms; R5 and R6 are selected from the group consisting of hydrogen and lower alkyl and alkenyl groups of from 1 to 6 carbon atoms or R5 and R6 may be concatenated together with hydrocarbyl groups to form a naphthyl group, said compounds being free of any substituent that has a tertiary carbon atom;
and wherein said .alpha.,.beta.-unsaturated cyclic anhydride represented by the formula wherein R8 and R9 taken together represent a - ? O ? - linkage, R10 is hydrogen, vinyl, alkyl or alkenyl of 1-12 carbon atoms and m is a number from 0 to 10.

13. The composition as defined in claim 11 wherein said polyphenylene ether is poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4 phenylene)ether.

14. The composition as defined in claim 11 which further comprises a reinforcing filler.

15. The composition as defined in claim 11 wherein said polyphenylene ether resin comprises from about 30 to about 60 parts by weight of the total composition and said rubber-modified styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer comprises from about 40 to 70 parts by weight of the total composition.

16. The composition as defined in claim 11 which further comprises a reinforcing filler and a flame-retardant additive.

17. The composition as defined in claim 14 wherein said reinforcing filler is glass.

18. A thermoplastic composition comprising:
(a) a polyphenylene ether resin;
(b) a styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer; and (c) a reinforcing filler.

19. The composition as defined in claim 18 wherein said styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer is a rubber-modified styrene-maleic anhydride copolymer.

20. The composition as defined in claim 18 wherein said reinforcing filler is glass.

21. The composition as defined in claim 19 wherein said reinforcing filler is glass.

22. The composition as defined in claim 19 wherein polybutadiene is the modifying rubber.

23. The composition as defined in claim 21 wherein polybutadiene is the modifying rubber.

24. The composition as defined in claim 18 further comprising a flame-retardant additive.

25. The composition as defined in claim 19 further comprising a flame-retardant additive.

26. The composition as defined in claim 18 wherein said polyphenylene ether resin is poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4 phenylene)ether.

27. The composition as defined in claim 19 wherein said polyphenylene ether resin is poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4 phenylene)ether.

28. The composition as defined in claim 26 wherein said reinforcing filler is glass.

29. The composition as defined in claim 27 wherein said reinforcing filler is glass.