Laurolactam as a stabilizer against the thermo-oxidative degradation of poly(et...

• Author(s): Botelho, Gabriela ; Gijsman, P. ; Machado, A. V. ; Queirós, Arlete
• Date: 2004
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/1822
• Origin: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
• Subject(s): Poly(ether-esters); Stabilization; Thermo-oxidative degradation; Laurolactam
• Document Type: Article
• Language: English

Description

In this study we examined the influence of laurolactam on the thermo-oxidative degradation of a copolymer of poly(butylene terephthalate) and polybutylene glycol and of di(ethyleneglycol) dibenzoate, used as model compound. The degradation was followed by measurement of the oxygen uptake, FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy and measurement of the intrinsic viscosity changes during degradation. A stabilizing effect of laurolactam on the thermo-oxidative degradation could be observed, as an induction time was defined in which hydroperoxides were not formed and molecular weight was kept constant. After this period the oxygen uptake, hydroperoxide formation and polymer conversion increased more slowly.