| Abstract: | A single broad exothermic peak due to cis-trans isomerization appears near 140°C in the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) curve of polyacetylene (PA) films, polymerized by a nonsolvent method using a high-temperature-aged catalyst. This exothermic peakis described by a two-state model, in which population probabilities for cis and trans states are assumed to change through the forward and backward reactions. The enthalpy difference between the two states is 1.69 kcal/mol, which was derived from the slope of the plot of heat of isomerization versus cis content. The activation energy was determined experimentally from the heating-rate dependence of the peak temperature. A single activated process with an activation energy of 28 kcal/mol was observed for the PA film. Other parameters such as the preexponential factor were estimated by comparing theoretical and experimental DSC curves. |
