Modeling the emission of hydrogen chloride and free chlorine from the thermal treatment of polyvinyl chloride- (PVC-) based plastic materials

To simulate the emission of hydrogen chloride gas and free chlorine from the thermal treatment of plastic materials, especially those based on PVC, two mathematical models have been developed. An experimental research program has been undertaken to validate these models. It is found that the masses of hydrogen chloride and free chlorine computed with these models are in good agreement with the experimental results. According to these results, it can be assumed that the quantity of hydrogen chloride and free chlorine produced during the thermal treatment of PVC-based materials strongly depends on the pyrolysis temperature and duration. The agreement between the results from simulations and empirical studies also shows the capability of these models to predict the amount of gas that will be produced from PVC-based materials upon thermal treatment.