The general procedure of Example 12 was as follows:(a) In a glass reactor equipped with a stirrer, a nitrogen introduction tube, a thermometer and a T-tube, 80.0 g (0.444 mol) of 9-fluorenone, 613.5 g (4.44 mol) of 2-phenoxyethanol and 2.0 g of tungstophosphoric acid catalyst [(H3PW12O40).nH2O] were added. (b) The mixture was reacted at 130°C for 4 hours under reduced pressure of 2.0 x 1.03 Pa. Upon completion of the reaction, the amount of polymers in the reaction mixture was 3.9%. To the reaction mixture was added 800.0 g of toluene, neutralized with aqueous sodium hydroxide and washed with water to separate the organic phase. Toluene and excess 2-phenoxyethanol were removed from the organic phase by concentration under reduced pressure. To the concentrate was added 560.0 g of toluene, and the mixture was heated and stirred at 80 °C for 1 hour, then cooled to 70 °C. 0.4 g of 9,9-bis[(4-(2-hydroxyethoxy)phenyl)]fluorene was added as a crystalline species, and the mixture was held at 70°C for 2 hours and then cooled to 20°C. The precipitated crystals were filtered and dried to give 78.0 g of white crystals 9,9-bis[(4-(2-hydroxyethoxy)phenyl)]fluorene (yield: 90.2%, purity: 99.2%). The melting point of the resulting product was 163 °C.
