Abstract
A polymeric blend has been prepared using urea formaldehyde (UF) and epoxy (DGEBA) resin in 1:1 mass ratio. The thermal degradation of UF/epoxy resin blend (UFE) was investigated by using thermogravimetric analyses (TGA), coupled with FTIR and MS. The results of TGA revealed that the pyrolysis process can be divided into three stages: drying process, fast thermal decomposition and cracking of the sample. There were no solid products except ash content for UFE during combustion at high temperature. The total mass loss during pyrolysis at 775 degrees C is found to be 97.32%, while 54.14% of the original mass was lost in the second stage between 225 degrees C and 400 degrees C. It is observed that the activation energy of the second stage degradation during combustion (6.23 x 10(-4) J mol(-1)) is more than that of pyrolysis (5.89 x 10(-4) J mol(-1)). The emissions of CO2, CO, H2O, HCN, HNCO, and NH3 are identified during thermal degradation of UFE. (C) 2013 Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.