Studies on the decomposition behavior of nylon-66 in supercritical water

Water was used for the decomposition of nylon-66. Gas chromatography (GC) and Mass spectrometry (MS) analytic techniques were employed to identify the composition of received products. Quantitative analyses were performed by gas chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that after 30 min at conditions of 380 degreesC, 28 MPa nylon-66 was completely decomposed and there were no oligomers present. At that condition water had acidic-type catalysis effects on nylon-66 decomposition and hypo decomposition of hexanediamine while the adipic acid from nylon decomposition showed similar effects to supercritical water. The process of nylon decomposition in supercritical water was discussed. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.