Autoxidation of poly(alkylene glycols) in solution

Data reported for the autoxidation of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and poly(propylene glycol) (PPG) in solution at relatively long reaction times were analyzed. A relatively simple and a more general kinetic scheme with corresponding rate expressions were used. It was found that the more general scheme gave somewhat more satisfactory agreement between calculated and observed values of several reaction variables. Limitations in the applications of both schemes to PEG and PPG autoxidations are mentioned.