The thermal decomposition of trifluoroacetic acid

Abstract

The major products of thermal decomposition of trifluoroacetic acid at 300–390° in silica and mild-steel vessels are carbon dioxide, difluoromethyl trifluoroacetate, carbon monoxide, and trifluoroacetyl fluoride. Decomposition is believed to proceed through elimination of hydrogen fluoride, followed by the formation of difluoromethylene (CF₂), which largely adds to trifluoroacetic acid to give the difluoromethyl ester. Reaction orders for decomposition and formation of products are fractional and increase with temperature, suggesting that the decomposition is partly heterogeneous.