Decyl acetate and decene pyrolysis under the same reaction conditions show that the formation of the minor products during the pyrolysis of esters occurs by a parallel, and not a secondary, reaction. The radioactivity observed in the COa and CO produced during the pyrolysis of 1-hexyl acetate-lJ4C and the radioactivity in the methane from the pyrolysis of 1- hexyl acetate-2-14C strongly suggested a radical reaction pathway for the formation of the ...