The process of thermal degradation of polymer and the composition of scission products has been studied by the method of computer simulation. The probability of each degradation reaction was calculated by the composition of monomeric scission products which had been recovered by the experiments of thermal decomposition. The degradation processes were analyzed with these degradation probabilities simulated. The amounts of dimeric scission products calculated which were produced during the thermal degradation were also coincident with the experimental values. The quantitative analysis of PPE thermal degradation could be achieved and it is suggested that the computer simulation is useful to estimate material life of polymer even when it is dominated by various degradation processes.

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Optical fiber cables have been employed mainly underground and indoors, but in recent years there have been possibilities to use them in various outdoor environments. As a part of our examination of the reliability of fiber ribbons, we examined the ultraviolet degradation behavior of UV resins for fiber ribbons and of fiber ribbons that made use of these UV resins.
It was found that the accelerated deterioration by ultraviolet causes a rapid decrease in the Young's modulus of the soft material and a gradual increase in the Young's modulus of the hard material. From the elongation residual rate of the hard material it was learned that the 120 hours accelerated deterioration by ultraviolet is equivalent to an outdoor exposure of about 3 months.
Colored materials fade with the 480 hours accelerated deterioration by ultraviolet, and it was found that a resin blend that is resistant to ultraviolet and water resisting qualities are required.
It was also found that even when the fiber ribbon is subjected to the 480 hours accelerated deterioration by ultraviolet, there are no problems with degradation of the lateral pressure properties and fiber differentiability.

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