The oxidation of a
polymer is inhibited by adding to the
polymer about 0.005 to about 10 phr of an
antioxidant having (in non-polymeric form) the general formulaThe
polymer can be poly(vinylchloride), a
polycarbonate, a polyether,
polyethylene,
polypropylene, or a mixture thereof when the
antioxidant is not
phthalide and can be poly (vinylchloride), a
polycarbonate, a polyether, or a mixture thereof when the
antioxidant is
phthalide. In the formula, E is O, S, or N, R1 is H, R′, OR′, SR′, OP(R′)2, COR′, each R is independently selected from R1, alkylenyl from C1 to C12, aminoalkyl from C1 to C12, and hydroxyalkyl from C1 to C12, R′ is
alkyl from C1 to C12 or
aryl, alkylaryl, or aralkyl from C6 to C12, R″ is G, GO, GS, GNH, NHG, NHGO, NHGNH, NHGS, OG, OGO, OGNH, OGS, SGO, SGNH, or SGS, G is aklkylenyl from C1 to C12, arylenyl from C6 to C12, alkylarylenyl from C7 to C12, or arylalkylenyl from C7 to C12, m is 0 if E is O or S and is 1 if E is N, and two R groups can join from an alicyclic ring or an aromatic ring or an R group and an R1 group can join to form an alicyclic ring.