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Polybutene is an organic polymer made from a mixture of 1-butene, 2-butene, and isobutylene. C4 hydrocarbons, produced during ethylene steam cracking in oil processing, are also used as supplemental feed for polybutene. It is similar to polyisobutylene (PIB), which is produced from essentially pure isobutylene made in a C4 complex of a major refinery. The presence of isomers other than isobutylene can have several effects including: lower reactivity due to steric hindrance at the terminal carbon in, for example in polyisobutenylsuccinic anhydride (PIBSA) dispersant manufacture; and in the molecular weight–viscosity relationships of the two materials may also be somewhat different.
An important physical property is that higher-molecular weight grades thermally degrade to lower-molecular weight polybutenes; those evaporate as well as degrade to butene monomers, which can evaporate further. (2025). 9781439855379, CRC Press. ISBN 9781439855379 This depolymerization mechanism, which allows clean and complete volatization, is in contrast to mineral oils which leave gum and sludge or thermoplastics which melt and spread. The property is valuable for a variety of applications. For smoke inhibition in two stroke engine fuels, as the lubricant can degrade at temperatures below the combustion temperature. For electrical lubricants and carriers which might be subject to overheating or fires, polybutene does not result in increased insulation (accelerating the overheating) or conductive carbon deposits.
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