THERMAL-DEGRADATION OF SULFONATED POLY(ARYL ETHER ETHER KETONE)

The thermal degradation of sulfonated poly(aryl ether ether ketone) (S PEEK), with various degrees of sulfonation, was investigated by high r esolution pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) an d thermogravimetry (TG). It was found that the program of SPEEK is sim ilar to that of poly(aryl ether ether ketone) (PEEK), but that the pyr olyzate distribution of SPEEK depends strongly on the level of sulfona tion as well as on the pyrolysis temperature, There are two weight-los s steps in the dynamic TG curves; these correspond to the presence of two degradation processes for SPEEK. Based on the temperature-programm ing Py-GC data, the thermal degradation mechanism of SPEEK is discusse d.