A mechanism of photo-oxidative destruction for polythylene polymers in the presence of ferrocene derivative additives

The effect of ferrocene additive concentrations on the stability of polythylene polymers under atmospheric ageing and ultraviolet irradiation is reported. At concentrations under ca 5 × 10^?3 mol kg^?1 polymer the ferrocene compound is shown to diminish polymer resistance to light, whereas above this concentration such a compound stabilizes the polymeric matrix. Another purpose of the work is to look into the photo-oxidative destruction of polyethylene doped with ferrocene compound by using an EPR technique. A mechanism of photo-oxidative destruction of polyethylene polymers in the presence of ferrocene compounds is proposed.