Thermal degradation mechanisms of the copolymers of styrene (St) with methacrylonitrile (MAN) and amethylstyrene (aMSt) were studied by pyrolysis gas chromatography (Py-GC) and thermogravimetry (TG). Thermal degradation of vinyl polymers in flash pyrolysis proceeded mainly in the competition between depolymerization and back biting reaction caused by abstraction of H atom at a-position in pen-penultimate unit. Monomer molecules were regenerated by depolymerization, and dimer, trimer and ologomers were produced by back biting reaction. Methyl groups at a-position of monomer unit strictly hindered the back biting reaction. The role of functional groups on the thermal degradation was elucidated on the basis of bond dissociation energies of main chain (Q CÐC ), apparent activation energies (DE a ) obtained by Ozawa's method from the TG curves at various heating rates. Effect of chemical reactivity of ÐCN group in MAN unit on the thermal degradation was clarified by the controlled rate thermogravimetry (CRTG). Thermal Degradation of Copolymers / 265FIGURE 8. CRTG curves for PSt, PMAN and poly(St-co-MAN)s (F MAN = 33, 55, 78 mol%): constant rate of loss of mass, 20±30 mg min À1 .FIGURE 9. TG curves of PSt, PaMSt and poly(St-co-aMSt)s (F aMSt = 37, 52, 62 mol%): heating rate, 10°C min À1 .FIGURE 10. CRTG curves of PSt, PaMSt and poly(St-co-aMSt)s (F aMSt = 37, 52, 62 mol%): constant rate of loss of mass, 20±30 mg min À1 .