Structure and Dehydrochlorination of Poly(vinyl Chloride)

The wide applicability of poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), a tough thermoplastic resin, is due to a combination of moderate cost with the following characteristics [1]: (i) good general properties as a plastic material: (ii) great variation in properties, e.g., increase in heat distortion temperature, resistance to hot melt flow, improvement in mechanical, electrical properties, and processability of unplasticized PVC through external plasticization, block and graft copolymerization (internal plasticization), and chemical modification, e.g., chlorination, Friedel-Crafts, and cross-linking reactions: and (iii) processing versatility including injection molding, extrusion, blow molding, calendering, and lamination to produce many products of potential uses.