A simple model for predicting polymer ignition in a thermogravimetric analyzer

Ignition of three polymers (PP, PS and PVA) in air was studied using a DuPont 951 thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA). Time to ignition and ignition temperature were reported as a function of furnace temperature which varied between 550–700°C. The suitability of a simplified model to predict time to ignition was tested. The predicted value of time to ignition was heavily dependent on the assumed sample layer thickness (D). For example, when the average particle diameter, d_p, was ~0.5 mm, assigning D a value of D = 2 d_p (i.e. two layers of particles in sample pan) produced a good estimate of the time to ignition. However for d_p ~1 mm, a good estimate was obtained when D was chosen equal to d_p. The results indicated a deviation from experimental values of less than 15% at 700° C.     

A simple,sensitive graphical method of treating thermogravimetric analysis data

Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) is finding increasing utility in investigations of the pyrolysis and combustion behavior of materials. Although a theoretical treatment of the TGA behavior of an idealized reaction is relatively straight-forward, major complications can be introduced when the reactions are complex, e.g., in the pyrolysis of cellulose, and when experimental imperfections arise. Consequently, a fairly large number of analytical methods have been proposed for obtaining kinetic parameters from TGA curves. Among the proposed methods are several graphical procedures, mostly involving relatively inaccurate tehniques, such as obtaining slopes on a rapidly changing curve. Included among the proposed procedures is one which permits a linear plot of TGA data. The sensitivity with which such a plot can be used to identify and correct for a variety of experimental complications seems to have escaped even the proponents of the techniques. This paper provides an illustration of the use of this graphical procedure in a hypothetical first-order pyrolysis typical of those occurring in the TGA behavior of cellulose.     

The possibility of a simple transformation of thermogravimetric curves

A simple method is suggested for the Arrhenius-like representation of the thermal decomposition of a wide variety of materials. It consists in the transformation of the TG and the corresponding DTG curves, obtained as a single measurement by a derivative thermobalance. The method consists mainly in the division of the momentary DTG ordinates by the corresponding momentary TG values, the transformation of this value into logarithmic form, and the plotting of the logarithmic expression as a 1/T function. In many cases a straight line results testifying to a first-order reaction or a tolerable approximation of it.

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Zusammenfassung Eine einfache Methode zur Arrheniusanalogen Darstellung der thermischen Zersetzung vieler Arten von Substanzen wird vorgeschlagen. Sie besteht in der Transformierung der TG- und der entsprechenden DTG-Kurven, welche mit Hilfe einer derivierenden Thermowaage durch eine einzige Messung erhalten worden sind. Die Methode besteht hauptsächlich in der Teilung der bestehenden DTG-Ordinaten durch die entsprechenden TG-Werte, dann in der Transformierung dieses Symbols in die logarithmische Form und schließlich in der Darstellung dieses logarithmischen Ausdruckes als Funktion von 1/T, wobei in vielen Fällen eine Gerade oder eine annehmbare Näherung einer Geraden erhalten wird, die für eine Reaktion erster Ordnung spricht.

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Résumé On propose une méthode simple pour représenter la décomposition thermique d'un grand nombre de substances par une loi analogue à celle d'Arrhenius. La méthode consiste à transformer les courbes TG et TGD obtenues par une mesure unique à l'aide d'une thermobalance comportant un dispositif de dérivation. En premier lieu, on divise les ordonnées de la courbe TGD par les valeurs TG correspondantes puis on exprime ce symbole sous forme logarithmique et finalement on représente cette expression logarithmique en fonction de 1/T, ce qui donne dans de nombreux cas une droite et prouve ainsi qu'il s'agit d'une réaction du premier ordre ou d'une approximation qui peut Être tolérée comme telle.

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. , . , , , , , 1/T. , .

     

A way to halogenfree,flame-retardant laminates for electronic applications

Due to legal specifications and standards flame retardant polymers are used as insulating materials for electrical cable and wire, as casing and constructive materials in electrical engineering, as encapsulation materials for electronic components and in laminates for printed circuit boards. The most effective way to achieve flame retardancy is by using halogenated organic materials. Because of ecological reasons a major trend is the development of halogenfree non-corrosive flame retardant polymer materials. On the laminate side Siemens R&D developed a way to halogenfree laminates meeting the UL 94V-O specification.     

A simple automatic titrator based on a digital balance

A computer-controlled automatic titrator incorporating a weight burette is described. The titration vessel is mounted on the pan of a zero-displacement digital balance which records the weight of added sample as well as the weight of titrant added during the titration.     

Oligothiophene isocyanides for platinum-based molecular electronic applications

Understanding molecular orientation on a metal surface is key to designing molecular electronic device junctions. Though platinum device electrodes are of particular interest as a more stable alternative to the often used gold electrodes, the chemisorption of conducting molecules onto platinum surfaces has not been thoroughly studied. We present herein the first detailed study of the ability and manner in which soluble oligothiophene isocyanides, of lengths ranging from 2 to 7 nm, chemisorb onto platinum surfaces and nanoparticles. It was found that these oligothiophene isocyanides stand at a 41 degrees angle from the platinum surface normal, suggesting their applicability in molecule-bridged platinum electrode devices.     

Correlation balance in basis sets for electronic structure calculations

The balanced addition of polarization functions to the 6–31G and 6–311G basis sets for correlated wave functions is evaluated using bond energy predictions at the MP 2 and full MP 4 levels as a measure of correlation-balanced basis sets. The homolytic dissociations of the XH bonds in H₂, CH₄, NH₃, H₂O, and HF and the XY bonds in C₂H₆, NH₂NH₂, HOOH, and CH₃OH are used as the basis for the evaluation. It is found that correlation balance is achieved for HH, XH, and XY bonds, particularly at the MP 2 level, only if at least as many polarization sets, and sometimes more, are added to the hydrogens as are added to the heavy atoms.     

Development and applications of a preparative scale sample controlled thermogravimetric system

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry -     

A simple and an efficient strategy to synthesize multi-component nanocomposites for biosensor applications

We demonstrate that core–shell multi-component nanocomposites can be grown in situ at room temperature by a novel one-step approach without adding any reductant and stabilizer. We have presented a one-step method for the synthesis of multi-component nanocomposites in water solution, the multi-component nanocomposites could be produced directly and quickly in an in situ wet-chemical reaction. Here, Au–polypyrrole (PPy)/Prussian blue (PB) nanocomposites have been synthesized successfully under the same circumstance. With the addition of pyrrole monomers into mixture solutions, the autopolymerization of pyrrole into PPy and AuCl₄⁻ was reduced to elemental Au instantaneously as well as simultaneously. At the same time, PB produced along with elemental Au serving as a catalyst. Furthermore, we investigated the performance of Au–PPy/PB nanocomposites as amperometric sensor toward the reduction of H₂O₂, which displayed high sensitivity, fast response and good stability. The peak current of H₂O₂ increased linearly with the concentration of H₂O₂ in the range from 2.5 × 10⁻⁹ to 1.2 × 10⁻⁶ M, and the low detection limit of 8.3 × 10⁻¹⁰ M (S/N = 3) was obtained. Therefore, this work provides a new pathway to design and fabricate novel multi-component nanocomposites, which have unique characteristics and hold great applications in the fields of sensors, electrocatalysis and others.     

Nonlinear regression checking via local polynomial smoothing with applications to thermogravimetric analysis

A goodness‐of‐fit test statistic for nonlinear regression models based on local polynomial estimation is proposed in this paper. The criterion used to construct the test is the distance between the parametric fit and the nonparametric regression estimation. The good performance of the test is shown via a simulation study. The method is applied to check a logistic mixture regression model for real data coming from a thermal analysis problem. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A thermogravimetric study of phosphonium halides

The TG/DTG thermal curves for a series of phosphonium halides are presented. The stability of phosphonium salts increases in the order chloride < bromide ≈ iodide. While phosphonium salts with only nonpolar groups in the cation volatilize completely, increasing substitution by polar cyanoethyl groups results in residue formation. The kinetics of the thermal decomposition can be obtained using isothermal thermogravimetry.     

A thermogravimetric study of lithium tetraalkoxyborates

Properties of lithium tetraalkoxyborates Li[t-C₄H₉OB(OR)₃] (R = n-C₄H₉ to n-C₈H₁₇, n-C₁₂H₂₅) were studied by differential thermogravimetry. The kinetic parameters and heat effects of thermal decomposition of lithium tetraalkoxyborates in air and inert gas atmosphere as functions of the carbon chain length were determined.     

Synthesis of novel pyrene discotics for potential electronic applications

Novel pyrene discotics, 6,7,15,16-tetrakis(alkylthio)quinoxalino[2′,3′:9,10]phenanthro[4,5-abc]phenazines, TQPP-[SR]₄, were synthesized efficiently. The HOMO and LUMO energy levels of TQPP-[SR]₄ were estimated to be 5.57 eV and 2.97 eV, respectively. The average saturation hole mobility of TQPP-[C₁₂H₂₅]₄ was ∼10⁻³ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹.     

A simple method for preparation of macroporous polydimethylsiloxane membrane for microfluidic chip-based isoelectric focusing applications

A new, simple method was reported to prepare PDMS membranes with micrometer size pores for microfluidic chip applications. The pores were formed by adding polystyrene and toluene into PDMS prepolymer solution prior to spin-coating and curing. The resulting PDMS membrane has a thickness of around 10 μm and macropores with a diameter ranging from 1 to 2 μm measured using scanning electron microscope (SEM) imaging. This PDMS membrane was validated by integrating it with PDMS microfluidic chips for protein separation using isoelectric focusing mechanism coupled with whole channel imaging detection (IEF-WCID). It has been shown that five standard pI markers and a mixture of two proteins, myoglobin and β-lactoglobulin, can be separated using these chips. The results indicated that this macroporous PDMS membrane can replace the dialysis membrane in PDMS chips for the IEF-WCID technique. The preparation method of macroporous PDMS membrane may be potentially applied in other fields of microfluidic chips.     

A simple model of molecular electronic devices and its analytical solution

I present an analytically solvable model for molecular electronic devices (MEDs). The model contains all the essential components: semi-infinite contacts, molecule-contact interface, and of course, the molecule. I obtain explicit expression for the reflection coefficient r(E), as well as for the transmission probability T(E) [T(E)=1-mid R:r(E)mid R:(2)]. r(E) exhibits a surprisingly simple structure if studied as a function of a complex energy variable E. In this case, r(E) can be expressed in terms of a finite number of eigenvalues of a non-Hermitian Hamiltonian. This Hamiltonian also yields the molecular part of the MED wave function. Considering various MEDs, it is illustrated that the theory presented allows for a transparent interpretation of molecular conductance in terms of discrete eigenstates.     

A thermogravimetric analyzer for condensable gas adsorption under subatmospheric conditions

Potential alternative to petrochemical polymers, soy protein isolate (SPI), a plentily available, natural biopolymer is chemically modified with thiourea at 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 15 and 20 mass/mass% for better processing of plastic as a raw material. From the FTIR studies, it has been ascertained that there is no bonding reaction between SPI and thiourea and it acts as a modifier only. Thermogravimetric analysis of the modified material has been followed using a computer analysis method, LOTUS package, developed by us for assigning the degradation mechanism. A number of equations have been used to evaluate the kinetic parameters. The mechanism of degradation of the biopolymer is explained on the basis of the kinetic analysis.     

A thermogravimetric technique for continuous quantitative sulphur analysis at elevated temperatures

The problems of conventional methods for determining sulphur content at elevated temperatures are discussed and a thermogravimetric technique for a direct continuous analysis is described. The technique is illustrated by employing the Cu-S system at 1200 and with a discussion of the necessary correction factors for buoyancy and volatilization being included.

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Zusammenfassung Es werden die Probleme der üblichen Methoden der Schwefelbestimmung bei hohen Temperaturen erörtert und eine thermogravimetrische Methode zur direkten kontinuierlichen Analyse vorgeschlagen. Das Verfahren wird an dem Beispiel des Systems Cu-S bei 1200 gezeigt mit Hinweis auf die infolge Auftrieb und Verflüchtigung nötige Korrektur.

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Résumé On discute les problèmes posés par les méthodes conventionnelles pour doser le soufre aux températures élevées et l'on décrit une méthode thermogravimétrique pour l'analyse directe en continu. La technique est illustrée sur l'exemple du système Cu-S à 1200; on discute les facteurs correctifs que l'on doit appliquer pour tenir compte de la poussée et de la volatilisation.

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. Cu-S 1200 .

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One of the authors, C. W. B., is grateful to the Noranda Research Centre for a graduate fellowship. We are also grateful to the Canadian National Research Council for financial assistance.