Dehydrochlorination of Poly(viny1 Chloride) in Pyridine. III. Thermal and Mechanical Properties

The thermal properties of dehydrochlorinated PVC (DHPVC) were evaluated. From thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA), a larger decrease in thermal stability of dehydrochlorinated PVC than of PVC was observed. Thermal stability of DHPVC increased continuously with an increase in dehydrochlorination temperature and dilution of the reaction solution during dehydrochlorination. However, with an increase in dehydrochlorination time, an increase in thermal stability after an initial drop was obtained. The highly cross-linked product separated from the reaction solution at higher dehydrochlorination temperatures showed a lower thermal stability than that of corresponding soluble DHPVC. The stress-strain behavior of dehydrochlorinated PVC samples was also studied.