Real time monitoring of slow pyrolysis of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) by different mass spectrometric techniques.

In the context of waste upgrading of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) by pyrolysis, this study presents three on-line mass spectrometric techniques with soft ionization for monitoring the emitted decomposition products and their thermal dependent evolution profiles. Pyrolysis experiments were performed using a thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) under nitrogen atmosphere with a heating rate of 5 °C/min from 30 °C to 600 °C. Single-photon ionization (SPI at 118 nm/10.5 eV) and resonance enhanced multiple photon ionization (REMPI at 266 nm) were used with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) for evolved gas analysis (TGA-SPI/REMPI-TOFMS). Additionally, the chemical signature of the pyrolysis products was investigated by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) ultra high resolution Fourier Transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) which enables assignment of molecular sum formulas (TGA-APCI FT-ICR MS). Despite the soft ionization by SPI, the fragmentation of some compounds with the loss of the [O-CH = CH2] fragment is observed. The major compounds were acetaldehyde (m/z 44), benzoic acid (m/z 122) and a fragment of m/z 149. Using REMPI, aromatic species were selectively detected. Several series of pyrolysis products were observed in different temperature intervals, showing the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), especially at high temperatures. FT-ICR MS data showed, that the CHO class was the most abundant compound class with a relative abundance of 45.5%. The major compounds detected with this technique corresponded to m/z 193.0495 (CHO) and 149.0233 (CHO). Based on detailed chemical information, bulk reaction pathways are proposed, showing the formation of both cyclic monomer/dimer and linear structures.