FTIR spectroscopic investigation of thermal effects in semi‐syndiotactic polypropylene

The temperature‐dependent behavior of individual components within metallocene‐catalyzed semisyndiotactic polypropylenes (semi‐sPP) with a wide range of stereoregular content (26 to 96% rr) is studied using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and temperature‐modulated differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Changes in sensitive, high‐resolution absorbance spectra are observed as melt‐slow‐cooled thin films are subjected to stepwise temperature increases. In general, spectral bands previously identified as being sensitive to ordered structures (e.g., conformed chains, crystal morphs) appear to follow overall trends of shifting to lower wavenumbers (energies), broadening, and decreasing in peak area intensity as temperature increases. Peaks that appear due to “splitting” (observed in more stereoregular materials) show a trend toward coalescence as temperature increases; this corresponds to a gradual loss of chain conformational order. Gauche‐gauche‐trans‐trans (ggtt)_n helical and all‐trans (tttt)_n planar zigzag‐conformed chains that participate in the crystalline‐amorphous interfacial region (“mesophase”) appear to be more stable (i.e., they do not lose their conformational order as easily) with increasing temperature in materials with a greater degree of syndiotacticity. Moreover, IR data correspond well with modulated DSC endotherms located near 50 °C and 70 °C. At each transition temperature—thought to represent, respectively, a thermally driven chain conformation from planar zigzags to helices, and a dynamic disorder of helices marked by rapid gauche ? trans isomerization—the IR absorbance ratio, A₉₇₈/A₉₆₃, which represents the relative population of helical chains, undergoes an accelerated decrease. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 439–461, 2005     

Crystallization and phase morphology of injection‐molded isotactic polypropylene (iPP)/syndiotactic polypropylene (sPP) blends

The crystallization and phase morphology of the injection‐molded isotactic polypropylene (iPP)/syndiotactic polypylenen (sPP) blends were studied, focusing on the difference between the skin layer and core layer. The distribution of crystallinity of PPs in the blends calculated based upon the DSC results shows an adverse situation when compared with that in the neat polymer samples. For 50/50 wt % iPP/sPP blend, the SEM results indicated that a dispersed structure in the skin layer and a cocontinuous structure in the core layer were observed. A migration phenomenon that the sPP component with lower crystallization temperature and viscosity move to the core layer, whereas the iPP component with higher crystallization temperature and viscosity move to the skin layer, occurred in the iPP/sPP blend during injection molding process. The phenomenon of low viscosity content migrate to the low shear zone may be due to the crystallization‐induced demixing based upon the significant difference of crystallization temperature in the sPP and iPP. This migration caused the composition inhomogeneity in the blend and influenced the accuracy of crystallinity calculated based upon the initial composition. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 45: 2948–2955, 2007     

In situ FT‐Raman spectroscopic study of the conformational changes occurring in isotactic polypropylene during its melting and crystallization processes

The conformational changes occurring in isotactic polypropylene during the melting and crystallization processes have been carefully investigated using FT‐Raman spectroscopy at temperatures below, at, and above the polymer melting point. Results confirmed the retention of some crystallinity up to +210 °C, which is 50 °C above the melting point. It was found that, at temperatures just above the melting point (1–10 °C), there is still some short range order of at least 12 monomer units long in certain regions of the melt. At 10 °C above the melting point, the short range order drops below 12 monomer units resulting in the disappearance of the Raman band at 841 cm^–1. Vice versa, the experimental measurements show that the iPP melt system is stable when the persistence length of helical sequences is less than 12 monomer units. As soon as the helix length exceeds 12 units, the 3₁ helix conformation extends quickly and then crystallization occurs. These results are discussed in terms of Imai's microphase separation theory and it agreed very well with it. Also, from our observations for correlation splitting, Raman bands related to conformational states were identified. This analysis indicates the existence of three different conformational states at 808, 830, and 841 cm^–1. The 808 cm^–1 band was assigned to helical chains within crystals (representing crystalline phase). The 841 cm^–1 band was shown to be composed of a band at 841 cm^–1, assigned to shorter chains in helical conformation with isomeric defects (representing the isomeric defect phase), and a broader band at 830 cm^–1 assigned to chains in nonhelical conformation (representing the melt‐like amorphous phase). This indicates the detection of a three‐phase structure in iPP, where a third phase could be due to the presence of defect regions within the crystalline region, or due to the presence of an amorphous–crystal interphase. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2173–2182, 2006     

Synthesis and crystallization behavior study of syndiotactic polystyrene‐g‐isotactic polypropylene (sPS‐g‐iPP) graft copolymers

Based on coordination polymerization mechanism only, novel stereoregular graft copolymers with syndiotactic polystyrene main chain and isotactic polypropylene side chain (sPS‐g‐iPP) were synthesized via two steps of catalytic reactions. First, a chain transfer reaction was initiated by a chain transfer complex composed of a styrene derivative, 1,2‐bis(4‐vinylphenyl)ethane, and hydrogen in propylene polymerization mediated by rac‐Me₂Si[2‐Me‐4‐Ph(Ind)]₂ZrCl₂ and MAO, which gave iPP macromonomer bearing a terminal styryl group (iPP‐t‐St). Then the iPP‐t‐St macromonomers of varied molecular mass were engaged in syndiospecific styrene polymerization over a typical mono‐titanocene catalyst (CpTiCl₃/MAO) under different conditions to produce sPS‐g‐iPP graft copolymers of varied structure. With an effective purification process, well‐defined sPS‐g‐iPP copolymers were obtained, which were then subjected to differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarized optical micrograph (POM) studies. The graft copolymers were generally found with dual melting and crystallization temperatures, which were ascribable respectively to the sPS backbone and iPP graft. However, it was revealed that the two segments displayed largely different melting and crystallization behaviors than sPS homopolymer and the precursory iPP‐t‐St macromonomer. Consequently, the graft copolymer exhibited much distinctive crystalline morphologies when compared with their individual components. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011.     

Two‐phase crystallization kinetics of syndiotactic polystyrene

In this work, a two phase crystallization model based on the extension of the Kolmogoroff approach was proposed and verified by comparison with experimental isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization data of Syndiotactic Polystyrene (sPS) in a very wide range of cooling rates, up to 600 °C/s. To investigate the effects of high cooling rate on the sPS crystalline structure, a homemade apparatus was adopted. The morphology in solid samples was analyzed by densitometry, IR spectroscopy, and X‐rays diffraction. The coupling of these techniques allows the determination of the fractions of different crystalline phases. In agreement with melt‐crystallization studies of sPS proposed by different authors, either α and β forms could be produced depending on the thermal history of the sample. Results show that the stable β form is favored for specimens solidified at higher temperature or under low cooling rates, whereas α and mesomorphic forms are favoured at low temperature or high cooling rates. The proposed multiphase crystallization kinetics model successfully described all the range of experimental data. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 1757–1766, 2010     

Morphology evolution and crystalline structure of controlled‐rheology polypropylene in micro‐injection molding

In this paper, the microstructural evolution of controlled‐rheology polypropylene (CRPP) with different melt viscoelasticities was investigated by polarized optical microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy, differential scanning calorimeter, and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction. It is found that a typical “skin‐core” structure formed in CRPP microparts and the thickness of oriented layer of CRPP microparts decreases notably with the addition of peroxide. The thickness of oriented layer and the distribution of different layers strongly depend on the melt flow properties and the corresponding relaxation time (λ). Furthermore, the mechanisms of the suppressed formation of oriented layers during the micro‐injection molding process are discussed mainly from the viewpoint of rheology and thermodynamics. It is revealed that the shear‐induced orientation is one of the key factors for the formation of oriented molecular structure (row nuclei). The final thickness of the oriented layer is the result of the competition between the orientation behavior and the disorientation behavior. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thermal properties and crystalline structure of syndiotactic polystyrene‐based miscible blends

This work examined the effect of the pre‐melting temperature (T_max) on the thermal properties and crystalline structure of four miscible syndiotactic polystyrene (sPS)‐based blends containing 80 wt % sPS. The counterparts for sPS included a high‐molecular‐weight atactic polystyrene [aPS(H)], a medium‐molecular‐weight atactic polystyrene [aPS(M)], a low‐molecular‐weight atactic polystyrene [aPS(L)], and a low‐molecular‐weight poly(styrene‐co‐α‐methyl styrene) [P(S‐co‐αMS)]. According to differential scanning calorimetry measurements, upon nonisothermal melt crystallization, the crystallization of sPS shifted to lower temperatures in the blends, and the shift followed this order of counterpart addition: P(S‐co‐αMS) > aPS(L) > aPS(M) > aPS(H). The change in T_max (from 285 to 315 °C) influenced the crystallization of sPS in the blends to different degrees, depending on the counterpart's molecular weight and cooling rate. The change in T_max also affected the complex melting behaviors of pure sPS and an sPS/aPS(H) blend, but it affected those of the other blends to a lesser extent. Microscopy investigations demonstrated that changing T_max slightly affected the blends' crystalline morphology, but it apparently altered that of pure sPS. Furthermore, the X‐ray diffraction results revealed that the α‐form sPS crystal content in the blends generally decreased with an increase in T_max, and it decreased with a decrease in the cooling rate as well. The blends showed a lower α‐form content than pure sPS; a counterpart of a lower molecular weight more effectively reduced the formation of α‐form crystals. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 2798–2810, 2006     

Structure and morphology development in syndiotactic polypropylene during isothermal crystallization and subsequent melting

Structure and morphology development during the isothermal crystallization and subsequent melting of syndiotactic polypropylene (sPP) was studied with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), time‐resolved simultaneous small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS), and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD) methods with synchrotron radiation. The morphology of sPP isothermally crystallized at 100 °C for 3 h was also characterized with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Time‐ and temperature‐dependent parameters such as the long period (L), crystal lamellar thickness (l_c), amorphous layer thickness (l_a), scattering invariant (Q), crystallinity (X_c), lateral crystal sizes (L₂₀₀ and L₀₁₀), and unit cell dimensions (a and b) were extracted from the SAXS and WAXD data. Results indicate that the decreases in L and l_c with time are probably due to the formation of thinner crystal lamellae, and the decreases in a and b are due to crystal perfection. The changes in the morphological parameters (Q, X_c, L, and l_c) during subsequent melting exhibited a two‐stage process that was consistent with the multiple melting peaks observed in DSC. The two high‐temperature peaks can be attributed to the melting of primary lamellae (at lower temperatures) and recrystallized lamellae (at higher temperatures). An additional minor peak, located at the lowest temperature, was also visible and was related to the melting of thin and defective secondary lamellae. TEM results are consistent with the SAXS data, which supports the assignment of the larger value (l₁) from the correlation function analysis as l_c. WAXD showed that the thermal expansion was greater along the b axis than the a axis during melting. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 39: 2982–2995, 2001     

Annealing induced variation of crystalline structure and mechanical properties of syndiotactic polypropylene fibers

<正>Syndiotactic polypropylene(sPP) as-spun fiber(sPP1) and drawn fiber(sPP2) were prepared by melt-spinning and melt-spinning/hot-drawing,respectively.The structure transition of the two fibers induced by annealing at different temperatures and the corresponding mechanical properties were subsequently investigated by the combination of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR),wide-angle X-ray diffraction(WAXD) and tensile testing.The results indicate that the chain conformation and crystal forms of the two sPP fibers are not obviously changed at low annealing temperature (40℃).With increasing the annealing temperature,the trans-planar conformation and mesophase in sPP1 and sPP2 fibers can be completely transformed to helical conformation and crystal form I under tension.Upon removing the tension,a small amount of mesophase and trans-planar conformation will be regained.The mechanical properties of the annealed fibers are manifestly dependent on their initial structure and the annealing temperature.     

Crystallization kinetics and melting behavior of syndiotactic 1,2‐polybutadiene

Differential scanning calorimetry was used to investigate the isothermal crystallization, subsequent melting behavior, and nonisothermal crystallization of syndiotactic 1,2‐polybutadiene (st‐1,2‐PB) produced with an iron‐based catalyst system. The isothermal crystallization of two fractions was analyzed according to the Avrami equation. The morphology of the crystallite was observed with polarized optical microscopy. Double melting peaks were observed for the samples isothermally crystallized at 125–155 °C. The low‐temperature melting peak, which appeared approximately 5 °C above the crystallization temperature, was attributed to the melting of imperfect crystals formed by the less stereoregular fraction. The high‐temperature melting peak was associated with the melting of perfect crystals formed by the stereoregular fraction. With the Hoffman–Weeks approach, the value of the equilibrium melting temperature was derived. During the nonisothermal crystallization, the Ozawa method was limited in obtaining the kinetic parameters of st‐1,2‐PB. A new method that combined the Ozawa method and the Avrami method was employed to analyze the nonisothermal crystallization of st‐1,2‐PB. The activation energies of crystallization under nonisothermal conditions were calculated. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 553–561, 2005     

Isotactic polypropylene reversible crystallization investigated by modulated temperature and quasi‐isothermal FTIR

Modulated temperature techniques allow to separate the reversing and non‐reversing contributions of material transitions. To investigate reversible crystallization and melting of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) at microstructural level, in this research, modulated temperature Fourier transform infrared (MTFTIR) and quasi‐isothermal FTIR (QIFTIR) analyses are used. By following the intensity variation of iPP regularity bands, associated with 3₁ helix structures of different lengths (n repeating units), MTFTIR evidences that, independently from helix length, a reversing coil–helix transition takes place few degrees below the non‐reversing crystallization onset. By comparing spectroscopic and differential scanning calorimetry experiments performed in quasi‐isothermal conditions, the reversing transition was found to be associated with the reversible melting‐crystallization phenomenon. Moreover, QIFTIR evidences that helices of different lengths contribute differently to the reversible transition: the helices composed of n = 10 and n = 12 are active into all the explored temperature range (30–130 °C) whereas the shortest (n = 6) and the longest (n > 15) helices contribute to reversibility at T > 100 °C. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2019 , 57, 922–931     

Reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy investigation of the crystallization kinetics of poly(ethylene terephthalate) ultrathin films

Reflection–absorption infrared spectroscopy was used to study the crystallization behavior of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) ultrathin films. The crystallinity of ultrathin films was estimated by the fraction of trans conformers of PET. The isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization kinetics of ultrathin films with different thicknesses were investigated. The thinner PET film showed slower kinetics during isothermal crystallization than the thicker film. Moreover, the final crystallinity of films with various thicknesses were reduced with decreasing thickness. An Avrami equation was used to fit the acquired results. The Avrami exponents decreased with the film thickness. As for the nonisothermal crystallization, the cold‐crystallization starting temperature shifted to a lower temperature as the film thickness increased. The influence of the substrate on the crystallization kinetics of the films was also studied. The half‐crystallization times and final crystallinities of ultrathin films adsorbed onto a self‐assembled‐monolayer‐treated surface and an untreated substrate were clearly different, although their thickness dependence was similar. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 4440–4447, 2004     

Real‐time orientation and crystallinity measurements during the isotactic polypropylene film‐casting process

A method based on Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) transmission spectra is proposed to measure the crystallinity of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) samples. The method parameters were tuned as compared with wide‐angle X‐ray scattering measurements performed on test samples characterized by different crystallinity values obtained by solidification of thin iPP films under several cooling rates in a homemade device. The FTIR dichroic ratio measurements were adopted to measure crystalline and average Hermans' orientation factors of iPP samples obtained by film casting. The crystalline orientation measurement method was validated as compared with the birefringence measurement. The techniques were successfully used in real time during some film‐casting runs with a suitably modified FTIR system made of a spectrometer equipped with two optical guidelines and an external detector. Real‐time measurements are reported and discussed. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 998–1008, 2003     

Crystallization and melting of isotactic polypropylene crystallized from quiescent melt and stress‐induced localized melt

Temperature dependency of crystalline lamellar thickness during crystallization and subsequent melting in isotactic polypropylene crystallized from both quiescent molten state and stress‐induced localized melt was investigated using small angle X‐ray scattering technique. Both cases yield well‐defined crystallization lines where inverse lamellar thickness is linearly dependent on crystallization temperature with the stretching‐induced crystallization line shifted slightly to smaller thickness direction than the isothermal crystallization one indicating both crystallization processes being mediated a mesomorphic phase. However, crystallites obtained via different routes (quiescent melt or stress‐induced localized melt) show different melting behaviors. The one from isothermal crystallization melted directly without significant changing in lamellar thickness yielding well‐defined melting line whereas stress‐induced crystallites followed a recrystallization line. Such results can be associated with the different extent of stabilization of crystallites obtained through different crystallization routes. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 957–963     

Nonisothermal crystallization and melting behavior of syndiotactic polypropylenes of different microstructure

Syndiotactic polypropylenes and their copolymers with 1‐olefins were synthesized using two metallocene/MAO catalytic systems, and the effect of the different microstructures on nonisothermal crystallization and subsequent melting was studied. Using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) it was observed that samples with lower content of defects showed crystallization on cooling from the melt, and a double melting peak in the subsequent heating scan, the latter associated with melt, recrystallization and remelt processes that it was confirmed by its nonreversing exothermic process found by means of temperature modulated DSC (MDSC). However, polymers with high amount of defects showed cold crystallization on heating followed by a melting process, that it was observed by MDSC. Wide angle X‐ray diffraction was used for characterizing the changes of crystalline forms in relationship with crystallization process. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 46: 798–806, 2008     

Rheooptical Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy of the deformation behavior in quenched and slow‐cooled isotactic polypropylene films

Emerging technological applications for complex polymers require insight into the dynamics of these materials from a molecular and nanostructural viewpoint. To characterize the orientational response at these length scales, we developed a versatile rheooptical Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometer by combining rheometry, polarimetry, and FTIR spectroscopy. This instrument is capable of measuring linear infrared dichroism spectra during both small‐strain dynamic deformation and large‐strain irreversible deformation over a wide temperature range. The deformation response of quenched and slow‐cooled isotactic polypropylene (iPP) is investigated. In quenched iPP, under dynamic oscillatory strain at an amplitude of ～0.1%, the dichroism from the orientation of the amorphous chains is appreciably less than that from the crystalline region. At large irreversible strains, we measured the dichroic response for 12 different peaks simultaneously and quantitatively. The dichroism from the crystalline peaks is strong as compared to amorphous peaks. In the quenched sample, the dichroism from the crystalline region saturates at 50% strain, followed by a significant increase in the amorphous region dichroism. This is consistent with the notion that the crystalline regions respond strongly before the yield point, whereas the majority of postyielding orientation occurs in the amorphous region. Our results also suggest that the 841 cm^?1 peak may be especially sensitive to the ‘smectic’ region orientation in the quenched sample. The response of the slow‐cooled sample at 70 °C is qualitatively similar but characterized by a stronger crystalline region dichroism and a weaker amorphous region dichroism, consistent with the higher crystallinity of this sample, and faster chain relaxation at 70 °C. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 40: 2539–2551, 2002     

A study of the yield and post‐yield behavior of syndiotactic polypropylene

The strain recovery of three syndiotactic polypropylenes (s‐PPs) differing in the percentage of [rrrr] pentad is investigated. A suitable method based on loading–unloading tests at constant displacement rate in tensile loading conditions is adopted to measure the residual and recovered strain components of the applied strain. The method allows to obtain a large amount of data from few tests and to explore a wide strain range. The dependence of the material's strain recovery on the applied strain is analyzed in relation to s‐PP strain‐induced microstructural changes and crystalline form transitions, which are reported in literature. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2014 , 52, 1276–1282     

Effects of the oriented mesophase on the cold crystallization of syndiotactic polystyrene and its blend with poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide)

The effects of molecular orientation on the crystallization and polymorphic behaviors of syndiotactic polystyrene (sPS) and sPS/poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene oxide) (PPO) blends were studied with wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD) and differential scanning calorimetry. The oriented amorphous films of sPS and sPS/PPO blends were crystallized under constraint at crystallization temperatures ranging from 140 to 240°C. The degree of crystallinity was lower in the cold‐crystallized oriented film than in the cold‐crystallized isotropic film. This was in contrast to the case of the cold crystallization of other polymers such as poly(ethylene terephthalate) and isotactic polystyrene, in which the molecular orientation induced crystallization and accelerated crystal growth. It was thought that the oriented mesophase was obtained in drawn films of sPS and that the crystallization of sPS was suppressed in that phase. The WAXD measurements showed that the crystal phase was more ordered in an sPS/PPO blend than in pure sPS under the same annealing conditions. The crystalline order recovered in the cold‐crystallized sPS/PPO blends in comparison with the cold‐crystallized pure sPS because of the decrease in the mesophase content. The crystal forms depended on the crystallization temperature, blend composition, and molecular orientation. Only the α′‐crystalline form was obtained in cold‐crystallized pure sPS, regardless of molecular orientation, whereas α′, α″, and β′ forms coexisted in the cold‐crystallized sPS/PPO blends prepared at higher crystallization temperatures (200–240°C). The β′‐form content was much lower in the oriented sPS/PPO blend than in the isotropic blend sample at the same temperature and composition. It was concluded that the oriented mesophase suppressed the crystallization of the stable β′ form more than that of the metastable α′ and α″ forms during the cold crystallization of sPS/PPO blends. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 1665–1675, 2003     

Copolymerization of propylene with higher α‐olefins in the presence of the syndiospecific catalyst i‐Pr(Cp)(9‐Flu)ZrCl2/MAO

The catalyst system i‐Pr(Cp)(9‐Flu)ZrCl₂/methylaluminoxane was used for the synthesis of random syndiotactic copolymers of propylene with 1‐hexene, 1‐dodecene, and 1‐octadecene as comonomers. An investigation of the microstructure by ¹³C NMR spectroscopy revealed that the stereoregularity of the copolymers decreased because of an increase in skipped insertions in the presence of the higher 1‐olefin. The melting temperature of the copolymers, as measured by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), decreased linearly with increasing comonomer content independently of the comonomer nature. During the DSC heating cycle, an exothermic peak indicating a crystallization process was observed. The decrease in the crystallization temperature with higher 1‐olefin content, measured by crystallization analysis fractionation, indicated a small but significant dependence on the nature of the comonomer. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 40: 128–140, 2002