Mechanism of poly(vinyl chloride) stabilization by mixtures of zinc and calcium carboxylates with various complexing agents

Investigations were made on the effects of zinc and calcium carboxylates, polyols and other oxygen-containing compounds, nitrogen- and sulphur-containing compounds and of mixtures of zinc calcium carboxylates, zinc carboxylates-complexing agent, calcium carboxylate-complexing agent and of zinc carboxylate-calcium carboxylate-complexing agent upon the rate of dehydrochlorination and crosslinking and on the absorption spectrum of PVC during degradation in vacuum at 180°. The interaction of the stabilizers with 2-chlorobutane (a model for normal units of PVC) was studied at 180°. It was shown that, in the thermal degradation of PVC, zinc carboxylates give synergistic mixtures with compounds having -OH, -SH or -NH groups. In the thermal degradation of PVC in the presence of mixtures of zinc carboxylates with polyols, there are exchanges between chloro-containing groups of PVC and carboxylic groups of salt and alcohol residue. Zinc salts also catalyze the interaction of polyols with double (particularly conjugated double) bonds of degraded PVC. The investigated compounds do not form synergistic mixtures with calcium carboxylates. The triple mixtures of zinc and calcium carboxylates with complexing agents are more effective stabilizers of PVC than the binary mixtures zinc carboxylate-calcium carboxylate and zinc carboxylate-complexing agent. The mechanism of synergistic interaction in PVC stabilization by these mixtures are discussed.