Anti-autocatalysis activity of tea polyphenols in nitrocellulose thermal decomposition

A novel natural macromolecule stabilizer, tea polyphenol, was developed based on the scavenging effect of nitroxide radical to enhance the thermal stability of nitrocellulose. The structural of tea polyphenols was confirmed by infrared spectroscopy, and their good thermal stability of tea polyphenols in nitrocellulose was confirmed by methyl violet paper test and vacuum stability test. The iso-thermogravimetric test showed that tea polyphenols could prolong the safe storage life of nitrocellulose. The inhibition of tea polyphenols on the autocatalytic thermal decomposition of nitrocellulose in the early stage of nitrocellulose thermal decomposition was confirmed by SEM images at different stages of nitrocellulose thermal decomposition. The thermal interaction between tea polyphenols and nitrocellulose was further analyzed by non-isothermal thermal analysis. Experiments confirmed that tea polyphenols can enhance the thermal stability of nitrocellulose. Their addition increased the T 0 of nitrocellulose by 2.0–9.4 ℃, the T bp 0 by 1.4–9.6 ℃, and the activation energy of nitrocellulose by 5.38–9.77 kJ·mol –1 .