Wide angle X-ray diffraction studies of polytetrafluoroethylene and ethylen-tetrafluoroethylen-bipolymers in the range 9.5 K–270 K

PTFE shows in the whole temperature range investigated a triclinic crystal structure with cell parametersa=0.952 nm,b=0.559 nm,c=1.706 nm,=87.9°, = 90.0° and=91.8°. The temperature dependence ofa andb-axis is linear, thec-axis shows a change in thermal expansion at 150 K. The inherent strain is small. The crystallite sizes are measured, paracrystalline distortions are absent.The bipolymers show only an ordered arrangement in lateral direction under maintenance of the helical structure. The lateral arrangement is very distorted and the range of order is aboutD _L 10 nm.     

Crystal structure of ionic and non-ionic surfactants based on polyoxyethylenated dodecanol: A13C-CP-MAS-NMR and x-ray investigation

Crystal structure of monodisperse non-ionic surfactants having the general formula C₁₂H₂₅O–(CH₂–CH₂–O)_nH (C₁₂E_n),n=7,9, 10, 15, 16 and ionic derivatives, C₁₂H₂₅–O–(CH₂–CH₂–O)_n–CH₂COONa (C₁₂E_nC),n=3,4,5,6,7,9, 12 has been investigated by¹³C-CP-MAS-NMR and x-ray diffraction. A structural model, in which aliphatic and polyether segments are segregated in bilayers stacking parallel to the elongation direction of the molecules, fits the experimental data for both series. The experimental values of the repeat distance along the stacking directiond(001) are linearly dependent onn and the slope is nearly equal to twice the repeat distance of7/2 helix conformation, which is typical for crystalline polyethyleneoxide. The values ofd(001) agree very well with the values expected for the C₁₂ segment in a planar zig-zag conformation, which is tilted with respect to the polyerther segment (7/2 helix conformation) in such a way that both the aliphatic and the polyether regions adopt the mass density of the corresponding crystalline compound. Two additional phases have been detected for C₁₂E_nC. One of them is probably characterized by the planar zig-zag conformation of the polyether chain. The meader model, previously proposed in the literature for surfactants containing polyethylene oxide segments is inconsistent with the obtained experimental data.     

Differential scanning calorimetric study of phase changes in poly(ethylene glycol) dodecyl ether-water systems

Phase changes in binary systems of poly(ethylene glycol) dodecyl ethers, C₁₂H₂₅(OC₂H₄)_xOH (x=5, 6 and 8) with water have been studied between –40 to 100 C by differential scanning calorimetry. A number of transitions, including the liquidliquid phase separation, were seen and the transition temperatures and enthalpy changes were determined. The observed temperatures were generally in good agreement with reported phase diagrams. In the C₁₂E₅ system, three of the four three-phase lines were seen and a more complete phase diagram is suggested for the water-rich part of the system. Most of the phase changes seen above 0 C are accompanied by small endothermic enthalpy changes of 0.7 to 0.9 kJ (mol C₁₂E_x)^–1, independent of system studied, type of transition and transition temperature. Water-rich solutions and liquid crystalline phases separate upon freezing into ice and crystals of hydrated amphiphile. Eutectics are developed at the following temperatures and compositions: C₁₂E₅ –3.0 C and 54 wt % C₁₂E₅; Q₂E₆ –4.5 C and 54 wt % C₁₂E₆, C₁₂E₈ –3.8 C and 49 wt % C₁₂E₈.     

A study of the gel structure in a nonionic O/W cream by X-ray diffraction and microscopic methods

The structure of a nonionic O/W cream and its separate components were investigated by X-ray diffraction and microscopic methods. The results presented in this paper are combined with the results obtained with DSC in order to elucidate these structures. The very important role of water with respect to the formation of the colloidal structures is discussed. The influence of water on the polymorphic behaviour of cetylstearylalcohol is attributed to a good structural fit of its-modification and water. Hydration induces a tilt of the alkyl chains of poly(oxyethylene)₂₀glycerylmonostearate (PGM₂₀). For this surfactant an antiparallel arrangement of the molecules is proposed. The lamellar structures present in mixtures of cetylstearylalcohol, PGM₂₀ and water are discussed extensively.     

Conformational motion and disorder in aliphatic nylons The case of nylon 6.6

On the basis of thermal analysis it is suggested that the crystals of aliphatic nylons exhibit conformational disorder above the glass transition. The disorder begins gradually at about room temperature and is evidenced by an increase of the heat capacity to values higher than that of the melt. The specific case of nylon 6.6 is investigated by thermal analysis and x-ray diffraction. The onset of conformational disorder can be clearly separated from premelting. It is shown that the Brill transition, as defined by the merging of the two main peaks in the x-ray diffraction pattern, occurs gradually and is thermal-history-dependent. The transition is not a first-order one, it is only an incidental thermal effect, associated with a packing change in the crystal. In solution-crystallized (sc) samples this change is related to a distinct endothermic peak, while in melt-crystallized (mc) samples it is related to a broad endotherm.Dedicated to Professor Dr. W. Pechhold on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

Phase transition of polycarbonate in blends with liquid crystal

Phase transition temperatures of polycarbonate film consisting of micron-sized liquid crystalline droplets were investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermo-optical analysis (TOA) methods. Both a decrease in (T _g ) and (T _m ) of the polycarbonate with an increase of liquid crystal (LC) content in the sample were observed. The decrease ofT _g is related to the plastifying effect of a low molecular weight LC substance remaining soluble in the polycarbonate matrix. A fraction of the liquid crystal contained in the droplets was estimated on the basis of theT _g decrease.     

Calorimetric and diffractometric study of the room-temperature transitions of polytetrafluoroethylene from aqueous suspension polymerization

The room-temperature transitions of native (never-melted) polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) obtained by aqueous suspension polymerization have been studied through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and wide-angle x-ray scattering (WAXS). Two crystal-crystal transitions are observed, instead of the four shown for native PTFE from aqueous emulsion polymerization. One crystalline component seems to be present, which may correspond to the low-transient, already evidenced for PTFE from aqueous emulsion polymerization.     

Growth of polyethylene single crystals from the melt: change in lateral habit and regime I–II transition

Using the technique of extraction, single crystals have been obtained from polyethylene fractions isothermally crystallized from the melt at atmospheric pressure. It has been found that the lateral habit of single crystals changes in the vicinity of the transition temperature of growth regime (regime I–II): lenticular shape elongated in the direction of theb axis (type A) in the range of regime I and truncated lozenge with curved edges of {200} and {110} growth faces (type B) in that of regime II. The transition of lateral habit causes a drastic change in the width of {110} growth faces; {110} growth faces are well developed in type B crystals while they cannot be observed and must be very small in type-A crystals. It has been shown that the growth regime of the small {110} growth face of type-A crystals must be in regime I; hence the regime I–II transition can be explained as the result of this change in lateral habit (width of the {110} growth face).     

Fabrication and characterization of orientation in skew stretched polyethylene terephthalate films

Skew stretched films were prepared by first unaxial stretching and subsequently skew stretching at 30 and 60 angles to various stretch ratios. The films were characterized by refractive index (birefringence), infrared absorption (dichroism) and wide-angle x-ray diffraction measurements. The data are represented in terms of ellipsoids and symmetry axes were determined. The results from the different methods are compared. Biaxial orientation factors are computed based on the experimentally determined axes.     

On the theory of melting polymer crystals

On the basis of the intermolecular potentials data structural phase transitions in polymer crystals (polyethylene) are described. By using the meanfield approximation, the theories of premelting transitions for paraffin crystals and conformational melting of polyethylene crystals were developed. The dependence of temperatures of such transitions upon chain length was calculated and rather good agreement with experimental data was shown.Dedicated to Prof. Dr. W. Pechhold on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

Thermo-optical analysis as a complementary method in the study of phase transitions of thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer and its blends with polycarbonate

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermo-optical analysis (TOA) were applied to study the phase transitions phenomena of thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer and its blends with polycarbonate. It was found that both methods are complementary. Glass transition temperatures of the blends of polycarbonate with liquid crystalline polymer were measured and discussed.     

Dielectric relaxation in polymer solids Part 2: Application of the new model to polyurethane systems

Measurements of the complex permittivity of crosslinked polyurethanes at different temperatures in the frequency range 1–10⁵ Hz are discussed with respect to shape of relaxation curves. Using a new model (published in preceding paper) the shape parameters are related to small and large scale interaction.     

Dilatometric study of glass transition kinetics in polyisoprene

From dielectric measurements the thermal dependence and the distribution function of the relaxation times can be determined. In the present contribution we are testing the correspondence between the relaxation times obtained from the dielectric measurement and the dilatometric behavior of the material in the vicinity of the glass transition temperature. The experimental data used for the comparison were obtained for the sample of polyisoprene.     

Discussion of craze formation and growth in amorphous polymers in terms of the multiplicity of glass transition at low temperatures

A craze, the typical deformation zone in an amorphous polymer, can be divided into a precraze and a proper craze. A better understanding of the two corresponding formation processes is possible in terms of glass transition multiplicity.The precraze is associated with the molecular mobility in the confined flow zone, which is part of the main transition. The proper craze corresponds to the mobility in the flow transition zone (terminal zone for shear). A negative pressure generated by nonuniaxial stress is considered to be important for the maintainance of the molecular mobility in these zones belowT _g . The behavior of the zones at negative pressure and low temperatures Tg is considered using a pressure-temperature diagram. The fibril structure of crazes is discussed by a defect diffusion model for the proper glass transition; it is correlated with the sequential physical aging of the corresponding frozen structural defects. Typical mode lengths of the molecular mobilities in the different zones are compared with typical craze parameters. The structure of the craze material is considered to result from confined flow processes which cannot percolate because in the main transition the flow is confined by entanglements, and in the flow transition zone the flow is stopped by releasing the negative pressure due to crack propagation.     

Acid hydrolysis of carboxymethylcellulose of low degree of substitution

Cotton cellulose was swollen in a sodium hydroxide solution and carboxymethylated by a two-bath method for different periods of time for each process. The kinetics of acid hydrolysis and the crystallinity of the swollen and carboxymethylated samples were measured. The proportion of broken bonds, rate constants for hydrolysis, and permeability of cellulose to hydrolyzing agents were calculated. The susceptibility of glycosidic linkages to acid hydrolysis was improved by carboxymethylation more than by swelling in alkali. The increased accessibility of carboxymethylcellulose to acid was regarded as a consequence of increased intra-and intercrystalline swelling and of the glycosidic bonds' weakness caused by the electron-attracting carboxymethyl group on the C-6 position.     

Colloid-chemical properties of ruthenium dioxide in relation to catalysis of the photochemical generation of hydrogen

A colloid of RuO₂, prepared by thermal decomposition of RuCl₃, was characterized with respect to its colloid-chemical properties and assessed as a catalyst for photochemical production of hydrogen. The RuO₂ proved to be unstable towards coagulation, even under conditions of low electrolyte concentration and in the presence of polymers. The sol manifested the same electric double layer characteristics as many other oxide dispersions. The point of zero charge (p.z.c.) in indifferent electrolyte was positioned at pH 5.75.Adsorption of methylviologen (MV²⁺), a commonly used electron relay in photochemical systems, at the RuO₂/solution interface is mainly a result of attractive coulombic interactions (above the p.z.c. of RuO₂). No indications have been found that it adsorbs on RuO₂ under the operational conditions of hydrogen production. In the hydrogen production system, the mass transfer of methylviologen radicals (MV⁺) is a rate-limiting factor. As a function of the methylviologen concentration, the catalytic production of hydrogen passes through a maximum.Dedicated to Professor Dr. Dr. h. c. Armin Weiss on the occasion of his 60th birthday.     

A structural study of the mesophases of two oxyethylene alkyl ether-decane-water systems,a comparison between technical grade C12EO〈7〉 and pure C12EO6

As part of a study polyoxyethylene alkyl ethers (C _m EO _n ), water and decane, the phase diagram and the structures of the mesophases of pure C₁₂EO₆ and technical grade C₁₂EO₇ were compared. The constructed phase diagrams of the two systems show a great resemblance except for one difference: the viscous isotropic phase is only present in the C₁₂EO₆ phase diagram.The swelling behavior of the lamellar and hexagonal phases was studied with smallangle x-ray scattering. Both the lamellar and hexagonal phases showed an ideal swelling behavior and no differences between the lamellar and hexagonal phases of the two systems were detected.With freeze-fracture electron microscopy the hexagonal and lamellar phases were visualized. No differences in the textures of the lamellar phases were found, however, the micrographs of the hexagonal phases of the two systems clearly showed different textures. While in the hexagonal phase of the C₁₂EO₆ system only infinite long rods were visualized, short interrupted rods were found in the hexagonal phase of the C₁₂EO₇ system.     

X-ray scattering study of molecular order in a liquid crystal-side group polysiloxane

The molecular structure of a polysiloxane with phenyl benzoate mesogenic side groups was investigated in an x-ray scattering study in the partially crystalline, smectic and nematic phase, and in the melt. In the crystalline phase polymer molecules have the form of straight ribbons with a double-comb-conformation. A bilayer structure is built up by regular stacking. Layers are the dominating structure element not only in the crystalline and smectic phase, but also in the nematic phase, and even in the isotropic melt. Layers are planar in the smectic phase and curved in the nematic phase, with an asymmetric distribution of the normal vectors about the director. In the isotropic melt there is evidence for the occurrence of clusters with layer-like short-range order.     

Dynamic light scattering study of heat aggregation of insulin

Dynamic light scattering measurements on heat aggregation of zinc-insulin between temperaturesT=20 °C and 40 °C in 0.1 M NaCl aqueous solutions with pH= 4.01, 7.5 and 9.03, are reported. The experiments were performed on very dilute solutions in the concentration range 20 to 160 g/cc. It has been observed that the process of heat aggregation was linear with temperature. The concentration dependence of translational diffusion coefficient was found to be negative in consistence with an earlier result. Upon temperature reversal the hysteresis-like behavior was found to be predominantly large at pH=7.5. The process of dissociation of Insulin aggregates with temperature reversal was also found to be linear with temperature decrement. Both the coefficients of heat aggregation and dissociation (upon temperature reversal) were larger at pH=7.5 than at pH=4.01 and 9.03. The low polydispersity in the correlation spectra indicated that both the association and dissociation processes were apparently stepwise in nature.