In order to study the impact of atmosphere during electron beam irradiation (EBI) of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) precursor fibers, the latter were stabilized by EBI in both air and oxygen atmospheres. Gel-fraction determination indicated that EBI-stabilization under an oxygen atmosphere leads to an enhanced cyclization in the PAN fibers. In the Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis, the PAN fibers stabilized by EBI under an oxygen atmosphere exhibited a greater decrease in the peak intensity at 2244 cm-1 (C≡N vibration) and a greater increase in the peak intensity at 1628 cm-1 (C=N absorption) than the corresponding PAN fibers stabilized under an air atmosphere. From the X-ray diffraction analysis it was found that oxygen uptake in PAN fibers leads to an increase in the amorphous region, produced by cyclization.

The effect of the metal oxide catalyst in the dimerization of waste vegetable oil was investigated. The high efficiency and recyclability has allowed different metal oxides to be used as catalysts in numerous synthetic reactions. Herein, clay, aluminum, titanium, calcium, magnesium and silicon oxide micro/nanoparticles are used in a Diels-Alder reaction to catalyze the production of the dimer acids. The metal oxides assist the electron transfers during cyclization to produce the desired product. Liquid chromatography mass spectroscopy (LC-MS) and gel permeation chromatography (GPC) were used to verify the production of dimer acids. For the confirmation of cyclization, compounds were analyzed using the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. From the analysis, silylated or pristine clay showed its effectiveness as a catalyst in dimerization. Furthermore, alumina and alumina/silica composite showed successful performance in the reaction to yield cyclic dimer acids. These result suggested that metal oxides and montmorillonite might be used in synthesis of dimer acids for the recycle of waste vegetable oils.