a OBEYS OD TEXTILE FINISHING VIII Assoc. Prof. Michal Vik, Ph.D., MSc.‘er 28, s , ZF - Bea, FD Polymer combustion | Natural and synthetic polymers, when exposed to a source of sufficient heat, will decompose or ‘pyrolyse’ evolving flammable volatiles. These mix with the air and, if the temperature is high enough, ignite. Polymer Decomposition Flash ignition Autoignition AH./kJ kg" range/°C temperature/°C_ temperature/°C LDPE 340-440 340 350 46.5 Polypropylene 330-410 350-370 390-410 46.0 Polystyrene 300-400 345-360 490 42.0 PVC (rigid) 200-300 390 455 20.0 PMMA 170-300 300 450 26.0 Cellulose 280-380 210 400 17.0 (cotton)Polymer combustion Il tiie fous TE DT recorpoction products Ignition occurs either spontaneously (autoignition) or due to the presence of an external source such as a spark or a flame (flash ignition). If the heat evolved by this ignited flame is sufficient to keep the decomposition rate of the polymer above that required to maintain the concentration of the combustible volatiles, i.e. the ‘fuel’, within the flammability limits for the system, then a self-sustaining combustion cycle will be established. HEAT =—=»| POLYMER Combustion cycle