HEPHESTUS - AN EXPERT-SYSTEM IN PROLOG FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF THE PYROLYSIS-MASS SPECTRA OF POLYESTERS, POLYETHERS AND POLYUREAS USING THE CERTAINTY FACTOR MODEL

The enhanced version of the expert system (ES) HEPHESTUS used for the interpretation of pyrolysis mass spectra of polymers is described and discussed. This version uses the certainty factor model for quantitati ve evaluation of the proposed solutions. The ES applies to the followi ng categories of polymers: polyesters, polyethers and polyureas. The r ules used by the ES were extracted from the study of the pyrolysis pat hways of the above polymer categories. The rules correlate weighted ma ss spectra characteristics with polymer structures. The knowledge base of the ES was organised in a tree form, and the inference mechanism w as based on a depth-first search. Examples of applications are present ed. The abilities and the limitations of the ES are discussed.