ASTM International

Standard Practice for Rubber-Identification by Pyrolysis-Gas Chromatography
 N D3452

Annotation

This practice covers the identification of polymers in raw rubbers, and cured and uncured compounds, based on a single polymer, by the gas chromatographic patterns of their pyrolysis products (pyrograms). Implementation of this guide presupposes a working knowledge of the principles and techniques of gas chromatography, sufficient to carry out this practice and to interpret the results correctly.2

This practice will identify the following polymers:

Polyisoprene of natural or synthetic origin,

Butadiene-styrene copolymers,

Polybutadiene,

Polychloroprene,

Butadiene-acrylonitrile copolymers,

Ethylene-propylene copolymers and related terpolymers, and

Isobutene-isoprene copolymers.

This practice will not differentiate the following polymers:

Natural polyisoprene from synthetic polyisoprene.

Butadiene-styrene copolymers produced by solution and emulsion polymerization. It is sometimes possible to distinguish butadiene-styrene copolymers containing different amounts of styrene as well as random polymers from block polymers. 1.3.3 Polybutadiene with different microstructures.

Different types of polychloroprenes.

Butadiene-acrylonitrile copolymers with different monomer ratios.