Adsorption and Decomposition of Formic Acid Adsorbed on Pyrolyzed Polyacrylonitrile

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Infrared spectra of various pyrolyzed polyacrylonitrile and of deuterated formic acids (HCOOD, DCOOH, and DCOOD) adsorbed on it were investigated. The effect of pyrolysis temperature upon the decomposition products of formic acid adsorbed on the polymer was studied. It was found that parallelism exists between the concentration of the conjugated nitrile group and the percentage of the decomposition of formic acid adsorbed, leading to the conclusion that the active sites for the decomposition reaction are associated with the conjugated nitrile group in the case of polyacrylonitrile pyrolyzed below 300°C. On the other hand, there was a close correlation between the activity for decomposition and the number of free spins in the polymer pyrolyzed above 350°C.