Poly(dodecamethylene dodecanamide/dodecamethylene terephthalamide) copolymer, a new semi-aromatic copolyamide PA1212/12T, was synthesized by melting copolycondensation. The structures of products were characterized by FTIR, 1H NMR and DSC. The decomposition processes and mechanism of PA1212/12T in Nitrogen has been studied by thermogravimetry. It was found that the thermal degradation process of PA1212/12T was one-step reaction. The degradation temperature increased linearly with the increasing of the heating rate β. The values of activation energy obtained by Kissinger and Flynn-Wall-Ozawa kinetic methods were 126.9 and 127.9 kJ/mol. Analysis of experimental results indicated that the actual reaction mechanism was deceleration type R1 or F3 according to Coats-Redfern method.

Key words: polyamide 1212, poly(dodecamethylene terephthalamide), activation energy, decomposition reaction mechanism