The high temperature hydrolysis of polyacrynonitrile

The kinetics of conversion of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) were studied at 180–210°C in the presence of an excess of water. The reaction was found to start with a polymerization on the nitrile groups followed by hydrolysis to amide and carbonyl groups of the (-C=N-)n segments of alkali or acid. Hydrolysis of PAN without alkali is characterized by a moderately high conversion of the amide groups to carbonyls.