Distribution analysis of functional groups in polyvinyl chloride by derivatization-electron probe X-ray microanalysis

An analytic method referred to as "derivatization-electron probe X-ray microanalysis (EPMA)" has been developed to determine the distribution in polymers of 0.1% order functional groups with μm level lateral resolution. It is designed to increase the sensitivity and the resolution by chemical derivatization and EPMA, respectively. Fundamental performances of EPMA in analyzing derivatized polymers have been investigated. The detection limit for the concentration of Br in the brominated epoxy resin was 0.05 % and the lateral resolution was 3 μm. In addition, the depth distribution of C=C bonds in amine-degraded polyvinyl chloride (PVC) has been analyzed by this method. The results agreed well with those obtained by micro-IR spectroscopy. The sensitivity of this method was 30 times higher, and the lateral resolution was 4 times higher than those of micro-IR spectroscopy. These results proved this analysis is useful for the characterization of polymers and studies on polymer degradation.