THERMOGRAVIMETRY GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY MASS-SPECTROMETRY AND THERMOGRAVIMETRY GAS-CHROMATOGRAPHY FOURIER-TRANSFORM INFRARED-SPECTROSCOPY - NOVEL HYPHENATED METHODS IN THERMAL-ANALYSIS

Two doubly hyphenated, thermogravimetry-based analytical techniques, viz. TG/G-C/MS and TG/GC/IR, are described. A valveless, quartz, heated sample path between TG furnace and GC column minimizes losses of products. Furthermore, combination of a pulsed automated vapor sampling inlet and a transfer line type GC column permits high-speed GC identification of individual TG products while maintaining sufficiently high temporal resolution with the approximately 1-min sampling interval to provide kinetic information about the underlying reaction mechanisms. Example analyses on poly(alpha-methylstyrene), a styrene-isoprene block copolymer, and wood demonstrate the techniques' capability for monitoring specific minor products and isomers.