Temperature dependence of radiation chemistry of polymers

The changes in the properties of polymer materials which occur when they are subjected to high-energy radiation, e.g. electron beams and gamma rays, are a result of chemical reactions initiated in the polymer molecules by absorption of radiation energy. There is increasing interest in the utilization of polymer materials in radiation environments where the temperature may be less than -270°C or above 500°C, as in aerospace applications or particle accelerators. The effect of temperature on the radiation chemistry of polymers has not been studied extensively. In this paper, we report the temperature dependence of scission, crosslinking, formation of small molecules and depropagation in the radiation chemistry of polymers.