Differential thermal analysis constant sensitivity

Besides the isothermal kinetic methods mentioned above, by which activation parameters are determined by measuring the rate of dioxetane disappearance at several constant temperatures, a number of nonisothermal techniques have been developed. These include the temperature jump method, in which the kinetic run is initiated at a particular constant initial temperature (r,-), the temperature is suddenly raised or dropped by about 15°C, and is then held constant at the final temperature (7y), under conditions at which dioxetane consumption is negligible. Of course, for such nonisothermal kinetics only the chemiluminescence techniques are sufficiently sensitive to determine the rates. Since the intensities /, at 7 ,- and If at Tf correspond to the instantaneous rates at constant dioxetane concentration, the rate constants A ,- and kf are known directly. From the temperature dependence (Eq. 32), the activation energies are readily calculated. This convenient method has been modified to allow a step-function analysis at various temperatures and a continuous temperature variation.Finally, differential thermal analysis has been employed to assess the activation parameters in contrast to the above nonisothermal kinetic methods, in the latter the dioxetane is completely consumed and, thus, instead of initial rates, one measures total rates. 

---