Nonisothermal studies were carried out using thermogravimetry (TG) and differential thermogravimetry (DTG) to obtain the activation energy of the decomposition for poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC), stabilized by ethyl, N-phenylmaleimide, and 4-carboxylate (ENPMC). Thermal gravitational analysis (TGA) indicated that the ENPMC-PVC samples decompose in two main breakdown stages. The effect of the addition of a stabilizer (ENPMC), with different concentrations, to PVC was studied. The results indicate that the addition of ENPMC with 0.01 g/1 g PVC enhances the thermal stability of pure PVC. Samples from 0.01 g ENPMC/1 g PVC were exposed to infrared laser radiation with energy fluency at levels between 0.95 and 8.53 J/cm(2). The results of the thermal experiments indicate that the onset temperature of decomposition T-0 and thermal activation energy of decomposition E-a are affected by the laser energy fluency owing to the simultaneous processes of degradation and crosslinking. The variation of transition temperatures with either the stabilizer concentration or the laser energy fluence was determined using differential thermal analysis (DTA). The results indicate that the irradiation with a laser to 7.11 J/cm(2) decreases the melting temperature of the pure PVC and this is most suitable for applications requiring the molding of this polymer at lower temperatures. (C) 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.