An investigation of the pyrolysis of binary mixtures of wool with other textile polymers and the surface properties of the carbons produce

In this research project the pyrolysis behaviour of three series of binary polymer mixtures (wool/Terylene, wool/Courtelle, Terylene/Courtelle) was examined using the techniques of Differential Thermal Analysis, Thermogravimetry and Hot--Stage Microscopy. Evidence from Differential Thermal Analysis and Thermogravimetry Indicated that the thermal stability of Terylene is reduced when pyrolysed in binary mixtures with wool or Courtelle. It is suggested that this decrease in thermal stability may be attributed to chemical interaction between the Terylene and degradation products arising from the second polymer of the binary mixture. The residual yields from large scale pyrolysis of the polymer mixtures wool/Courtelle, Terylene/Courtelle were observed to be excessively high. Hot-Stage Microscope observations of these two binary mixtures during pyrolysis indicated that coating of the non-fusing polymer by the fusing polymer took place. It was considered that this coating trapped degradation products from the non-fusing polymer (Courtelle) and thus gave rise to the excessively high residual yields observed. The various carbons prepared from the three series of binary polymer mixtures were activated by reaction with carbon dioxide. The adsorption of carbon dioxide by each carbon sample was measured at 195K. Dubinin-Radushkevich type I plots were constructed from this adsorption data. Mercury density measurements were made on selected activated carbons. Various types of deviations from linearity were observed in the Dubinin-Radushkevich type I plots. Further some of the highly activated carbons prepared from wool/Courtelle and Terylene/Courtelle polymer mixtures were found to adsorb negligible amounts of gas and had relatively high 'mercury densities'. The adsorption and 'mercury density' data for carbons prepared from polymer mixtures wool/Courtelle and Terylene/Courtelle have been interpreted in terms of a model structure for these carbons based on the coating phenomena observed during pyrolysis by Hot-Stage Microscopy.