Isoconversional Kinetic Analysis of Thermally Stimulated Processes in Polymers

TLDR

Isoconversional kinetic analysis evaluates how effective activation energy depends on conversion or temperature to make kinetic predictions and explore mechanisms of thermally stimulated processes. The paper reviews major results from the past decade on isoconversional analysis of polymer kinetics. Isoconversional methods apply the Arrhenius equation to a narrow temperature window tied to a specific conversion extent, and the study introduces these methods and surveys their impact on kinetic predictions, thermal degradation, crosslinking, glass transition, and crystallization. The authors conclude that isoconversional analysis offers a useful compromise between single‑step Arrhenius treatments and the multi‑step or non‑Arrhenius kinetics commonly observed. The article includes a magnified image illustrating the application of the Arrhenius equation to a narrow temperature region related to a given extent of conversion.

Abstract

Abstract Summary: Isoconversional kinetic analysis involves evaluating a dependence of the effective activation energy on conversion or temperature and using this dependence for making kinetic predictions and for exploring the mechanisms of thermally stimulated processes. The paper discusses major results obtained by the authors in the area of the isoconversional analysis of polymer kinetics over the past decade. It provides a brief introduction to isoconversional methods and surveys the impact made by isoconversional analysis in several application areas that include kinetic predictions, thermal degradation, crosslinking (curing), glass transition, and glass and melt crystallization. It is concluded that isoconversional analysis has been used broadly and fruitfully because it presents a fortunate compromise between the single‐step Arrhenius kinetic treatments and the prevalent occurrence of processes whose kinetics are multi‐step and/or non‐Arrhenius. An isoconversional method applies the Arrhenius equation to a narrow temperature region, Δ T related to a given extent of conversion. magnified image An isoconversional method applies the Arrhenius equation to a narrow temperature region, Δ T related to a given extent of conversion.