| Abstract: | Properties of glass-filled polyamide 66 modified by reactive oligoorganosilane were investigated. It was found that modification led to the improvement of the rheological properties of polyamide. The addition of the modifier decreased the glass transition temperature Tg of the polyamide from 60 to 50–59°C, without affecting the melting point. Composites modified by oligoorganosilane are characterized by higher (10–40°C) temperatures of onset and 50% weight loss as compared to the initial composite. It was found that chemical reaction of oligoorganosilane with polyamide and glass fibers took place during coextrusion of the modifier and polyamide, which formed firm chemical bonds between the polyamide and filler and thus favored a considerable improvement in the physicomechanical properties of the composite. The change in the structure and properties of the polyamide observed during modification by oligoorganosilane significantly affected its behavior during friction. The modification made it possible to increase the wear resistance of the composite 1.5 to 2 times and to decrease its friction coefficient from 0.38 to 0.27–0.33. It was also found that the ability of oligoorganosilane to react during its processing with water in the polyamide allowed for a significant decrease in the intensity of hydrolytic processes in the polymer. Because of this, the physicomechanical, rheological, and antifrictional properties of modified composites with an increased content of moisture (up to 3%) in the initial polyamide surpass similar characteristics of the composites containing no modifier, with not only enhanced but also optimum (0.2%) humidity of polymer granules.Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelement Compounds, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia. Translated from Mekhanika Kompozitnykh Materialov, Vol. 34, No. 4, pp. 545–553, July–August, 1998. |
