Thermal runaway risk of 2,2′-azobis(2-methylbutyronitrile) under the process situations

Thermal runaway accidents have occurred mainly during storage and transportation of azo compounds because large amounts of heat were released during the course of thermal decomposition. In this study, the thermal runaway characteristics of 2,2′-azobis(2-methylbutyronitrile) (AMBN) were first comprehensively investigated via differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), accelerating rate calorimetry (ARC), and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The onset temperature ( T on ), heat of decomposition ( Q ), and adiabatic temperature rise (Δ T ad ) were determined, which were involved in the safety of storage and transportation. Corresponding thermokinetic analyses were performed using DSC and ARC data. The data obtained from the experiments and calculation were utilized to predict the self-accelerating decomposition temperature (SADT), the control temperature ( T NR ), and the emergency temperature ( T C,I ). In addition, the flammable components in the pyrolysis products of AMBN were studied, particularly mixed with incompatible materials, such as HCl, NaOH, and Fe 2 O 3 , which helped predict the risk of thermal runaway during storage and transportation. Graphical Abstract