Thermal stability is a well approved method for the quality control of PVC and its products, measuring the time taken for HCl to be formed due to thermal decomposition
The PVC worldwide market is more the 28 million tonnes per year, which is approximately 20% of the total plastic production in the world.
The use of PVC in Europe can be segmented accordingly: building and construction 57%, packaging 9%, electrical 7%, automobile industry 7%, furniture/household 19%, others 1%.
In 1999 Metrohm introduced the Thermomat, which is a dedicated instrument for determining the thermal stability of PVC and PVC products.
Thermal stability is a well approved method for the quality control of PVC and its products.
When a sample is exposed to elevated temperatures, HCl gas is formed due to the thermal decomposition of the resin.
The time after which the HCl can be detected is the evaluation criterion.
The 763 PVC Thermomat uses conductivity for this detection.
Pure PVC resin cannot be used for manufacturing; it is always mixed (blended) with additives improving stability (stabilisers) and plasticity (plasticisers). Pure PVC shows very short induction and stability times, which if additives are added to it significantly increases these times. Applications for the PVC Thermomat include determination of PVC stability times (raw PVC and PVC products), and examination of PVC additives (stabilisers and plasticisers).
The Thermomat enables compliance to the following international standards: Din 53381 part 1, Din VDE 0472 part 614, ISO 182-3 parts 1,2, 3 and 4.
