Research on Thermal Stability and Degradation of Polymers and Their Potential Use in a Circular Economy Development
A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Materials".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 October 2025 | Viewed by 581
Special Issue Editors
Interests: thermal stability and degradation of polymers and polymer composites; identification of pyrolysis products by Py-GC/MS and TGA-FT-IR techniques; synthesis and characterization of liquid crystalline polyurethanes and non-isocyanate polyurethanes (NIPU)
2. Interdisciplinary Center for Circular Economy, Cracow University of Technology, Warszawska 24, 31-155 Kraków, Poland
Interests: thermal degradation; pyrolysis processes; flammability; circular economy; (bio)polymer composites
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Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Thermal stability and degradation routes often decide whether new materials exhibit applicative potential and fulfil market demands. Currently, the development of novel materials must meet additional requirements such as enhancing the life cycle of polymers and promoting a circular economy. The investigation of thermal degradation processes, including theoretical modelling prediction and the characterization of degradation products, enables the full life cycle of new materials to be addressed, with a focus on maximizing their use after the end of their performance.
Degradation reactions occur during processing when polymers are subjected to heat, oxygen and mechanical stresses, and during the lifetime of the materials, when oxygen and sunlight are the most important initiators of degradation. In addition, there have also been new developments in polymer technology in which degradation processes are beneficial. One area of development is biopolymers and their comparison with traditional materials in terms of degradation characteristics. The purpose of this Special Issue is to provide a comprehensive understanding of the degradation processes of polymeric materials in order to design and close reuse and sustainability loops.
Therefore, contributions to this Special Issue may cover all recent advances related to the thermal stability of polymers, the modelling of the degradation process and the characterization of degradation products, emphasizing possible applications in material recycling.
Dr. Artur Bukowczan
Dr. Tomasz M. Majka
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- thermal stability
- pyrolysis
- degradation kinetics
- recycling
- biopolymers
- sustainability
- circular economy
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