Improved antioxidant formulations for polymeric materials—synergistic protective effects in combinations of organotellurium compounds with conventional phenolic antioxidants or thiols

As judged by differential scanning calorimetry experiments at 190 °C and chemiluminescence measurements at 150 °C, addition of 0.10–0.30 wt.% of certain organotellurium compounds to polypropylene caused a notable protection against oxidation of the material. The best stabilizers (diaryl telluride 3 and alkyl aryl telluride 4), offered a similar degree of protection as commercial stabilizer formulations comprising a mixture of Irganox® 1010 and Irgafos® 168 (0.1 wt.% of each). The protective effect of the organotelluriums was substantially improved in combinations with sterically hindered phenols or thiols. The protection was often much better than the added effects of the individual components and, thus, can be considered as synergistic. Evaluation of a series of stabilizers where tellurium had been exchanged for selenium and sulfur (compounds 2) showed that the synergistic protective effect was unique for tellurium.