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Polymers are one of the major constituents in electrical components. A study investigating pre-combustion off-gassing and particle release by polymeric materials over a range of temperatures can provide an understanding of thermal degradation prior to failure which may result in a fire hazard. In this work, we report simultaneous measurements of pre-combustion vapor and particle release by heated polymeric materials. The polymer materials considered for the current study are silicone and Kapton. The polymer samples were heated over the range 20 to 400°C. Response to vapor releases were recorded using the JPL Electronic Nose (ENose) and Industrial Scientific's ITX gas monitor configured to detect hydrogen chloride (HCl), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrogen cyanide (HCN). Particle release was monitored using a TSI P-TRAK particle counter.

The Third Generation ENose is an air quality monitor designed to operate in the environment of the US Lab on the International Space Station. It detects a selected group of analytes at target concentrations in the ppm regime at an environmental temperature range of 18 - 30 °C, relative humidity from 25 - 75% and pressure from 530 to 760 torr. The abilities of the device to detect ten analytes, to reject confounders as “unknown” and to deconvolute mixtures of two analytes under varying environmental conditions has been tested extensively in the laboratory. Results of ground testing showed an overall success rate for detection, identification and quantification of analytes of 87% under nominal temperature and humidity conditions and 83% over all conditions.