Thermal stability of homo- and copolymers of vinyl fluoride

The thermal stability of poly(vinyl fluoride)(PVF) was studied by thermal gravimetry and mass spectrometry (TGA and TGA-MS). In low-molecular-weight polymers a two-step decomposition pattern was observed. It consisted of the dehydrofluorination to a polyene chain followed by decomposition of the resulting polyene at higher temperatures. Copolymers of vinyl fluoride-vinyl acetate (VF-VAc) and vinyl fluoride-vinyl chloride (VF-VCl) showed a simultaneous evolution of hydrofluoric acid and acetic acid and hydrofluoric acid and hydrochloric acid, respectively. This suggests that after the elimination of the weakest link a spontaneous elimination of neighboring HF molecules takes place