Two cyclic amides, 2-pyridone and 2,5-diketopiperazine (DKP), were pyrolysed at temperatures ranging from 700 to 1100 degreesC. Pyridone is the only one of the four main nitrogen functionalities found in coal that is likely to form HNCO under pyrolysis. DKP is a primary pyrolysis product from proteins, which are the main nitrogen source in biomass. The formation of HNCO from biomass has been suggested to originate from DKP and other cyclic amides. The aromatic 2-pyridone was thermally more stable than the non-aromatic DKP. Both amides formed HCN, HNCO and NH3. The NH3 yields, about 3-4% for 2-pyridone and 10% for DKP, were almost independent of temperature. The HCN yield on the other hand showed strong temperature dependence and increased with temperature for both of the cyclic amides. The HNCO yield decreased with increasing temperature for DKP over the whole temperature interval. For 2-pyridone, the pyrolysis was incomplete at the lowest temperature in the investigation. Between 900 and 1100 degreesC, the pyrolysis of 2-pyridone was complete and the HNCO yield decreased with increasing temperature. The HNCO/HCN ratio for both of the cyclic amides decreased with increasing temperature over the whole investigated temperature range. The finding in literature that the HNCO formation from cracking of coal tars produced a maximum HNCO yield at an intermediate temperature, is explained by the thermal stability of pyridone at low temperatures and the selectivity towards HCN at high temperatures. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.