Co-pyrolysis of polymethyl methacrylate with brown coal and effect on monomer production

Pyrolysis capillary gas chromatography has been applied to the study of the co-pyrolysis of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) with Slovakian brown coal with the aim of finding pyrolysis conditions yielding a maximum amount of methyl methacrylate (MMA). Effects of pyrolysis temperature and PMMA–coal weight ratios were investigated. Capillary gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometric detector (cGC-MS) was used for MMA identification. The highest yield of MMA in the pyrolysate was obtained at 750 °C. The optimal PMMA–coal weight ratio for maximum MMA production lies in the interval 0.5 mg PMMA and 0.6–0.8 mg brown coal with an MMA yield of 64%. Coal addition to the sample affects species recombination in gaseous phase, augments MMA production at higher temperatures and eliminates degradation products of PMMA and coal pyrolysis. Different conversion diagrams are characteristic for thermal degradation of single PMMA and in the mixture with coal. Detailed mechanism of synergetic effects arisen during co-pyrolysis are not yet known. It was also found that lower pyrolysis temperatures are more suitable to study degradation mechanism and kinetics while higher temperatures are more applicable for identification purposes. MMA decomposes completely at 900 °C.