Hydrogen chloride thermal degradation

Fig. 5. Hydrogen chloride evolution for the thermal degradation of a typical vinyhdene chloride polymer.

Thermal stabilizers combat degradation by removing the hydrogen chloride that is generated. Additionally, we treat polyvinyl chloride more gently than we do polyolefins. We use milder processing conditions (lower temperatures and lower shear rates) and add lubricants to... 

The Roles of Hydrogen Chloride in the Thermal and Photochemical Degradation of Polyvinyl Chloride... 

Figure 1. Hydrogen Chloride Evolution for the Thermal Degradation of a Typical Vinylidene Chloride Polymer.

Among the volatile compounds listed in Table II, only thiazole compounds are derived from the thermal degradation of thiamin. 5-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4-methylthiazole and 4-methyl-5-vinylthiazoIe are well-known thermal degradation products of thiamin. 5-(2-Chloro-ethyl)-4-methylthiazole may form through the interaction of 5-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4-methylthiazole with hydrogen chloride. However, the most abundant product, 4-methylthiazole, has never been identified as a decomposition product of thiamin. The mechanism for its formation is not clear. 

T he thermal degradation of poly (vinyl chloride) is now well under- stood to be caused by the ordered loss of hydrogen chloride, initiated at an unstable site, which results in the formation of long, colored polyene chains ... 

Milled rigid sheets of poly (vinyl chloride) on heating at 185°C. lose weight at a rate which increases with time. By polymer fractionation procedures, it was shown the rate of hydrogen chloride loss increases as the content of tetrahydro-furan-insoluble resin increases. The insoluble resin content accumulates at a rate which depends, in part, on the additive present. This insolubilization reaction is catalyzed by cadmium compounds. The increased dehydrochlorination rate of the insoluble crosslinked resins may result from the susceptibility of the crosslinked structures to oxidation and from the subsequent thermal degradation of the oxidation products. The effects of various common additives on the rates of insolubilization and weight loss are described. 

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