Studies of Structural Changes in PAN Fibers with Various Initial Structures under the Influence of Thermal Treatment in Media

Abstract

Abstract The aim of the paper is to assess the range and the mechanisms of transformations of the molecular structure and the physical microstructure of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibers produced by various manufacturers under the influence of thermal treatment in different conditions. The thermal treatments were carried out in different media (such as air, water, and steam), at various temperatures, and using different periods of treatment. Changes in the molecular structure were assessed using infrared (IR) absorption spectroscopy and evaluation of the differences in molecular cohesion energy of the fiber material during the dissolution processes. Changes in the fibers’ physical microstructure were investigated using densitometric, IR spectrophotometric, and X-ray diffraction methods; for assessment of both the reconstruction process of the paracrystalline matter of the fibers and the changes in the fibers’ total orientation, interferential polarization microscopy was used.