Thermal Decomposition Reaction of Ferrocene in the Presence of Oxalic Acid

Thermal decomposition of ferrocene [(C5H5)2Fe] in the presence of oxalic acid [(COOH)2·2H2O] samples—prepared by grinding the mixtures of ferrocene and oxalic acid at different weight ratios—is reported in this work. It presents a mathematical analysis of nonisothermal thermogravimetric data using multiheating rates to estimate reaction kinetics as well as thermodynamic parameters. Model-free (integral isoconversional) methods are employed to analyze thermogravimetric data. The most probable reaction mechanisms for thermal reactions have been identified. Based on the values of the activation energy Eα* and reaction rate Aα for different steps of decomposition, the values of ΔS*, ΔH*, and ΔG* for the formation of activated complex from the precursor are estimated. Besides, this work has proposed reaction pathways indicating the formation of hematite (α-Fe2O3) as the solid end-product of thermal decomposition of the samples.