Upon burning, many materials release toxic substances that may be harmful to the environment. To enable the identification of substances generated by combustion, the material is subjected to pyrolysis at a controlled temperature varying from 300 to 900ºC, and the resulting combustion products are separated by gas chromatography and identified by mass spectrometry.
This kind of work is also done to characterize some types of polymers that depolymerize when heated to high temperatures. Polyacrylates can be characterized from monomers generated in polymer pyrolysis processes, as well as styrene and butadiene, styrene and acrylonitrile, PVC and PVA copolymers, different types of nylon and chlorinated rubbers, etc.
This kind of work is also done to characterize some types of polymers that depolymerize when heated to high temperatures. Polyacrylates can be characterized from monomers generated in polymer pyrolysis processes, as well as styrene and butadiene, styrene and acrylonitrile, PVC and PVA copolymers, different types of nylon and chlorinated rubbers, etc.
