Thermokinetic parameters analysis and incompatible hazard evaluation of acrylonitrile by DSC

Acrylonitrile is an important raw material for the synthesis of polyacrylonitrile. The present study investigates the thermokinetic parameters of acrylonitrile by non-isothermal kinetic equations, using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The interrupt-rescanning method verifies the autocatalytic characteristic of acrylonitrile. The activation energy E_a is calculated by the Ozawa-Flynn-Wall method. The pre-exponential factor, reaction order and autocatalytic constant are calculated by the least square method. The thermal hazard of acrylonitrile mixed with different comonomers or Fe⁺³ is also explored by DSC. From the experimental results, the free-radical cyclization is sensitive to the heating rate of DSC. The ionic cyclization reaction is significantly influenced by the comonomers and Fe⁺³ could significantly decrease the initial reaction temperature and peak temperature compared with pure acrylonitrile. Based on the reactivity risk method, the relative risk of acrylonitrile with different comonomers or Fe⁺³ is assessed.