The thermogravimetric characteristics of tire rubber (TR), rubber mattress (RM) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), representing the rubber and plastic materials of municipal solid waste (MSW) were compared under 80N(2)/20O(2) and 80CO(2)/20O(2) atmospheres. Replacement of N-2 by CO2 reduced the weight loss rate of most peaks below 600 degrees C, postponed the location of the peaks above 600 degrees C, and resulted in less complete burnout, which indicated the combustion in CO2/O-2 atmosphere decreased the reactivity of the samples. The emissions of TR, RM and PVC combustion in a tube reactor were analyzed by a flue gas analyzer. The concentrations of CO, H-2, SO2 and NOx all increased initially and decreased afterwards along with the heating time. During 800-1000 degrees C, NOx and SO2 emissions of all samples increased by the temperature, and decreased by the replacement of N-2 by CO2. In both atmospheres, the subsequence of the NOx emission was TR > RM > PVC, and the subsequence of the SO2 emission was TR > PVC > RM. The effects of temperature and atmosphere on the CO and H-2 emissions of two rubbers were different from those of PVC. (c) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.