Kinetics of cyclization reaction in poly(acrylonitrile/methyl acrylate/dimethyl itaconate) copolymer determined by a thermal analysis

The PAN/MA/DMI (poly(acrylonitrile/methyl acrylate/dimethyl itaconate)) copolymer was synthesized for being used as a carbon fiber precursor. Its high melt-spinnability at 175–210 °C has been demonstrated elsewhere but the cyclization kinetics was thoroughly investigated by DSC analysis herein. The isothermal analysis based on the Kamal equation demonstrates that at a given temperature, the cyclization rate constant k of PAN/MA/DMI system is five to seven times that of a regular PAN/MA system. The activation energy E_a of the PAN/MA/DMI system, owing to the acid-catalysis by the DMI compound, is approximately 30 kJ/mol lower than that of a regular PAN/MA system. An isothermal Avrami analysis confirmed the above finding. Furthermore, based on the obtained nucleation index n, DMI may induce intermolecular cyclization which can rapidly stabilize the fiber shape of PAN/MA/DMI precursor. A nonisothermal analysis, obtained from the Ozawa's method, revealed the same tendency as did the isothermal results, but the difference between the average activation energies E_a obtained with and without DMI was reduced from 30 to 25 kJ/mol. Finally, a cyclization mechanism that involves the formation of a cyclic anhydride was proposed.