THERMAL-DEGRADATION OF AGED POLYTETRAHYDROFURAN AND ITS COPOLYMERS WITH 3-AZIDOMETHYL-3'-METHYLOXETANE AND 3-NITRATOMETHYL-3'-METHYLOXETANEBY THERMOGRAVIMETRY

The thermal decomposition behavior of the aged tetrahydrofuran copolym ers with 3-azidomethyl-3'-methyloxetane (AMMO) or 3-nitratomethyl-3'-m ethyloxetane (NMMO) were studied by thermogravimetry and evolved gas a nalysis, and compared with aged polytetrahydrofuran (poly-THF). The th ermal stability decreased in the order poly-THF > poly-AMMO-THF-AMMO > poly-NMMO-THF-NMMO, whereas the range of temperature for decompositio n increased in the order poly-THF < poly-AMMO-THF-AMMO < poly-NMMO-THF -NMMO. The apparent activation energies of the degradation for polymer s with ageing, calculated by the Ozawa method, were smaller than that without ageing. (C) 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.