Emission of Volatiles from Polymers — A New Approach for Understanding Polymer Degradation

Albertsson, Ann‐Christine; Gröning, Mikael; Hakkarainen, Minna

doi:10.1007/s10924-005-8702-2

Cited by 19 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Standard methods for studying loss of volatiles from plastics date back to the 1950s (ASTM International, 2011) and VOC monitoring is now routinely used for quality control purposes within the plastics processing industry (Albertsson et al, 2006). Analysis of VOC emissions from plastic and rubber materials is a large area, covering many different disciplines and this paper does not attempt to provide a comprehensive review of this topic.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polymers and volatiles: Using VOC analysis for the conservation of plastic and rubber objects

Curran

Strlič

2014

Studies in Conservation

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There is an acknowledged need for improved conservation of plastic and rubber objects within collections, including improved methods of condition assessment, material identification, and better understanding of material degradation. This reflects the inherent instability and wide-ranging formulations of many such objects and also the relative lack of knowledge in this field. Analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is a useful method for understanding the chemical processes involved in polymer degradation and for the identification of materials. Conservators and curators have used odor analysis to identify historical plastics for many years, and techniques ranging from acid detection strips to laboratory-based techniques such as solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry have been used to characterize plastic and rubber materials and to understand their degradation. VOC analysis also has potential as a technique for bulk material identification, as a complementary tool to spectroscopic analysis of the surface. A significant advantage of VOC analysis is its potential to be non-invasive, avoiding destructive sampling or even contact with an object. However, there is a greater potential for VOC analysis to be of benefit within conservation than is currently being exploited and significant scope for future research. In fields such as construction or waste management, there is also significant research into analysis of VOC emissions from plastic and rubber materials. The goal of this paper is to systematically review research from a range of fields including conservation, polymer degradation, and plastics recycling and it includes the use of VOC analysis to understand the causes of damage to plastic and rubber objects, to provide evidence of degradation and to monitor degradation progress, and to identify materials and distinguish between different formulations. Summaries of relevant studies are given, and volatile markers of object damage and polymer degradation and key volatile identifiers of a particular material are highlighted.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Polymers and volatiles: Using VOC analysis for the conservation of plastic and rubber objects

Curran

Strlič

2014

Studies in Conservation

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“…Volatile organic compounds are products formed during the thermo-mechanical degradation of a polymer, which particularly in the case of polypropylene can be chain fragments, impurities and fragments of different classes of additives 8,9 . Adams et al 10 collected particulates and volatile organic compounds emissions during the PP extrusion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermo-mechanical degradation and VOC emission of unstabilized and stabilized polypropylene copolymer during multiple Extrusions

2011

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The thermo-mechanical degradation during the multi-extrusion of unstabilized and stabilized polypropylene copolymer (cPP) was analyzed using the Chain Scission Distribution Function (CSDF) method. During the first extrusion of unstabilized cPP almost 60% of the initial polymeric chains were submitted to chain scission. The calculations using CSDF show a random chain scission process of chains with molecular weight below 100 kg.mol -1 , and above that a preferential chain scission process. When stabilized the cPP molecular weight is kept constant, even after four extrusions, independently of the stabilizers concentration used. Its chain scission is greatly reduced, only being noteworthy at high values of molecular weight, presenting in this case a preferential chain scission process. During extrusion the unstabilized cPP evolves Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) due to the volatilization of low molecular weight oxidized chain segments. VOC's emissions are greatly reduced during the melt processing of stabilized cPP, even after multiple extrusions.

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“…[1] [2][3] [4] In the field of cultural heritage, there is a growing interest in the use of VOC analysis as a tool for the characterisation of historic objects with recent work including the on-site detection of VOC emissions from historic wax objects in the Musee d'Orsay in Paris [5] and the analysis of historic paper samples. [6] [7] [8] A significant advantage of VOC analysis for heritage applications is that it has the potential to be entirely non-invasive, while also providing detailed chemical information.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The development of a SPME-GC/MS method for the analysis of VOC emissions from historic plastic and rubber materials

Curran

Underhill

Gibson

et al. 2016

Microchemical Journal

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Analytical methods have been developed for the analysis of VOC emissions from historic plastic and rubber materials using SPME-GC/MS. Parameters such as analysis temperature, sampling time and choice of SPME fibre coating were investigated and sampling preparation strategies explored, including headspace sampling in vials and in gas sampling bags. The repeatability of the method was evaluated. It was found that a 7 d accumulation time at room temperature, followed by sampling using a DVB/CAR/PDMS fibre, with a sampling time of 60 min at room temperature was a suitable strategy for the detection of VOC emissions from a wide range of historic plastic and rubber artefacts. For 20 mL vials, a sample size of 50 mg was found to be appropriate and grinding the samples improved the repeatability of the analysis and yielded higher levels of emissions. A nondestructive adaptation of the method that could be used directly on historic objects in a museum environment is also presented. The detected emissions improve understanding of ongoing degradation processes within historic plastic and rubber materials, in addition to providing information on material composition. KeywordsVolatile Organic Compounds; SPME-GC/MS; Heritage; Plastic; Modern Materials; A C C E P T E D M A N U S C R I P T ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT Figure CaptionsFigure 1. Selected VOC emissions detected from 3 different plastic objects depicted as the peak areas detected using the CAR/PDMS fibre relative to those detected using the DVB/CAR/PDMS fibre. The error bars show the average range between maximum and minimum values. Hydrocarbons 1 and 2 are two hydrocarbons detected in the VOC emissions of polyethylene samples which could not be identified based on their mass spectra.

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Emission of Volatiles from Polymers — A New Approach for Understanding Polymer Degradation

Cited by 19 publications

References 15 publications

Polymers and volatiles: Using VOC analysis for the conservation of plastic and rubber objects

Polymers and volatiles: Using VOC analysis for the conservation of plastic and rubber objects

Thermo-mechanical degradation and VOC emission of unstabilized and stabilized polypropylene copolymer during multiple Extrusions

The development of a SPME-GC/MS method for the analysis of VOC emissions from historic plastic and rubber materials

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