Evaluation of thermal hazard characteristics of building polymer initiator 2,2’-Azobis-(2-methybutyronitrile) under process conditions

The energy released by azo compounds (azo) in the decomposition process can meet the reaction threshold for promoting the building polymerization process (polyacrylonitrile, polyacrylamide, and polycarboxylate) and the decomposed free radicals also have a positive effect on polymer modification, which reduces the cost and improves the smoothness of the reaction process. However, the heat release of azo decomposition reaction may cause heat accumulation in the closed process system and cause the reaction to runaway. In addition to endangering process safety, the storage of a large amount of azo will also cause the temperature to rise due to the formation of self-reaction, eventually, a large number of azo reacts into runway due to the temperature influence of self-heating. The reaction hazard properties of azo have caused many thermal hazards in actual manufacturing process and storage conditions. To explore the hazardous characteristics of azo, 2,2’-azobis-(2-methylbutyronitrile) (AMBN), a commonly used low-temperature azo initiator, was selected in this study. AMBN can decompose at low temperature to generate energy. The reaction temperature and heat release mode are the crucial factor, which is based on the estimation of the reaction performance. This study will be recognized on the exothermic patterns of azo which characterized by mass change of reaction consumption. Through kinetic analysis, the reaction model of AMBN is constructed and the corresponding reaction parameters are assessed, such as TMR ad and TCL related to the reaction time, which can be used as the basis of operation and strain in actual process, storage and transportation.