Thermooxidative decomposition of nitrile copolymers containing itaconic acid units

IR spectroscopy showed that in nitrile copolymers and fibres containing units based on itaconic acid, these units can exist in different modifications. The formation and set of modifications are a function of the conditions of preparation of the copolymer and fibre, especially their hydrophilicity. The existence of different modifications of itaconic acid fragments (in both the initial samples and in the samples formed in the initial stages of heat treatment) affects the rate of the subsequent processes of thermooxidative decomposition of the objects and the set of polyconjugated systems formed and consequently also the supermolecular structure. These findings should be taken into consideration both in the analysis of the corresponding copolymers and in the technology of their fabrication and processing.