Effect of sizing materials of carbon fiber on solid-state cure of poly(p-phenylene sulfide)

The effect of sized carbon fibers on the solid-state cure of poly(p-phenylene sulfide) (PPS) was studied using differential scanning calorimetry. PPS resin reinforced with sized carbon fiber exhibited the largest cure peak for all cure temperatures and showed a second peak at low cure temperature which was absent in both PPS reinforced with desized carbon fiber and neat PPS resin. In a separate experiment in which epoxy prepolymer/PPS mixture was cured, the exothermic reaction was related to the presence of the epoxy sizing used on the carbon fiber. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of amorphous precipitated silica on the properties and structure of poly(p-phenylene sulfide)

Using a precipitation technique, silicas were obtained from sodium metasilicate solution employing an acidic agent. Alcohol solutions were used in the process of production of highly dispersed silicas, which resulted in partial blocking of the silica surface silanol groups. Moreover, studies on morphology and microstructure using transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were performed. The size distributions of primary particles and aggregate and agglomerate structures were determined using a ZetaPlus instrument using the dynamic light scattering method. The structure and molecular dynamics of the nanocomposite, consisting of poly (p-phenylene sulfide) (PPS) and of the precipitated silica, were studied using atomic force microscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance. It was proved that during annealing the fragmentation of PPS agglomerates takes place. This phenomena probably resulted from repulsion forces existing between agglomerates and aggregates. Fragmentation in the polymer network probably resulted from repulsion forces between agglomerates and smaller aggregates. Received: 7 November 2000 Accepted: 5 April 2001     

Thermostable poly(p-phenylene sulfide sulfonic acid) as ion exchangers

Poly(p-phenylene sulfide sulfonic acid) was thermally crosslinked for use as a cation exchange polymer with high thermal stability. The decomposition temperature (T_d) of the polymer increases with an increase in the crosslinking temperature. The crosslinking reaction at 300°C in air resulted in the formation of a strongly acidic cation exchange polymer with a T = 467°C and having an SO₂ bond, whose crosslinked structure was investigated using IR spectroscopy.     

Application of zone-drawing and zone-annealing method to poly(p-phenylene sulfide) fibers

A zone-drawing and zone-annealing treatment was applied to poly(p-phenylene sulfide) fibers in order to improve their mechanical properties. The zone-drawing (ZD) was carried out at a drawing temperature of 90°C under an applied tension of 5.5 MPa, and the zone-annealing (ZA) was carried out at an annealing temperature of 220°C under 138.0 MPa. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) thermogram of the ZD fiber had a broad exothermic transition (T_c = 110°C) attributed to cold-crystallization and a melting endotherm peaking at 286°C. The T_c of the ZD fiber was lower than that (T_c = 128°C) of the undrawn fiber. In the temperature dependence of storage modulus (E′) for the ZD fiber, the E′ values decreased with increasing temperature, but increased slightly in the temperature range of 90–100°C, and decreased again. The slight increase in E′ was attributable to the additional increase in the crosslink density of the network, which was caused by strain-induced crystallization during measurement. The resulting ZA fiber had a draw ratio of 6.0, a degree of crystallinity of 38%, a tensile modulus of 8 GPa, and a tensile strength of 0.7 GPa. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 36: 1731–1738, 1998     

Crystal structure of poly(p-phenylene) prepared by organometallic technique

The two-dimensional crystal structure of poly(p-phenylene) is investigated by linkedatom Rietveld analysis of the x-ray diffraction powder profile. Two molecular chains are packed in a rectangular pgg unit cell (a = 0.779 nm; b = 0.551 nm) with a paracrystalline shift distortion along the chain axis. The molecular conformation is not rigidly planar; rotations between adjacent phenyl-ring planes in a molecule alternate with an angle of about 20°. The setting angle between the mean molecular plane and the a axis is 55.5°.     

The effect of reaction time on the chain structure of poly(p-phenylene) and a study of doping with FeCl3

This paper deals with the relation between polymerization time and poly(p-phenylene) (PPP) yield in the synthesis of PPP by the Kovacic method. It is found that the reaction is uniform in the polymerization time range of less than 2 hr, with a PPP yield of up to about 60%, and then the yield increases a little with an increase of polymerization time. It has been found from the infrared spectra that the mainchain structure of PPP obtained from different polymerization times is exactly the same without orthoand meta-polymers. However there is a chlorine substitution for hydrogen on the phenyl rings, and the substitution quantity increases with the extension of reaction time. The reason why there is a great difference in conductivity appears with FeCl₃ doping is also studied, and we find it is related to different degrees of rinsing in the doping process.     

Synthesis and characterization of ran-copoly (p-phenylene sulfide sulfone/ketone)s

Random copoly(p-phenylene sulfide sulfone/ketone)s (PPSS/K) are prepared in high yield by the polycondensation of sodium hydrosulfide (NaSH) with bis(4-chlorophenyl) sulfone (BCPS) and 4,4′-dichlorobenzophenone (DCBP). The polymerization is conducted between 200–220°C, depending on the composition of the copolymer, and in the presence of water without any detrimental effects to the molecular weight. The copolymers with sulfone/ketone mole ratios (S : K) > 25 : 75 are amorphous, while the copolymers with S : K ratios ≤ 25 : 75 are crystalline. These materials form tough, creaseable films and exhibit a linear increase in the glass transition temperature with increasing sulfone content. Sulfuric acid solutions of the copolymers are dark orange to red and display an increasing λ_max in the uv-visible spectra as the S:K ratio of the copolymers decreases. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Effects of solvent treatment on crystallization kinetics of poly(p-phenylene sulfide)

Isothermal melt crystallization kinetics were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) for virgin and α-chloronaphthalene solvent-treated poly(phenylene sulfide) (PPS) systems. The overall crystallization rates were found to be much faster for the solvent-treated PPS than for the virgin neat PPS. Additionally, the Avrami crystallization plot for the solvent-treated PPS samples appeared as two straight portions with an apparent discontinuity, but as a continuous straight line for the virgin PPS system. After the treatment of solvent dissolution and subsequent drying, the residual trace α-chloronaphthalene, upon being quenched to the crystallization temperatures, initiated some localized solvent-induced nuclei-like crystals in PPS. It was the nuclei that enhanced secondary crystallization in treated PPS during the second stage, and the higher extents of secondary crystallization in the solvent-treated PPS caused the apparent discontinuous break in the Avrami plots. The causes for the difference were explained and the mechanism of the sequential primary/secondary crystallization kinetics for the solvent-treated PPS was satisfactorily described with a proposed series-parallel crystallization model. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Crystallization and melting of cold-crystallized poly(phenylene sulfide)

In this study, we report the melting behavior of poly(phenylene sulfide), PPS, which has been cold-crystallized from the rubbery amorphous state. We find that the crystallization kinetics are faster for cold-crystallized PPS than for melt-crystallized material, due to formation during quenching of a short-range ordered, but noncrystalline, structure. We observe that the endothermic response of cold-crystallized PPS at a large undercooling consists of a low temperature endotherm, followed by an exothermic region, and by the main higher melting endotherm. The lower melting peak temperature of cold-crystallized PPS increases as the crystallization temperature increases, but the main upper melting peak temperature remains almost the same. The size of the exothermic region is strongly related to the degree of undercooling, and must be taken into account in order properly to determine the degree of crystallinity of the material prior to the scan. When the crystallization time is varied, we see a systematic decrease in the size of the main endotherm, and an increase in size of the lower melting endotherm. This suggests that a portion of the main endothermic response is due to reorganization during the scan. Annealing will not only increase the degree of crystallinity but also improve the crystal perfection; therefore the ability of an annealed sample to reorganize decreases as the annealing time increases. However, an additional third melting peak is seen when a cold-crystallized sample is annealed at high temperature for a sufficiently long residence time. The existence of the third melting peak suggests that more than one kind of distribution of crystal perfection may occur when PPS has been cold-crystallized and subsequently annealed.     

2H NMR characterization of phenylene ring flip motion in poly(p-phenylene vinylene) films

Solid-state ²H quadrupole echo nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra and measurements of ²H spin lattice relaxation times have been obtained for films of poly(p-phenylene vinylene) deuterated in phenylene ring positions (PPV-d₄). NMR line shapes show that all the phenylene rings of PPV undergo 180° rotational jumps about the 1,4 ring axis (“ring flips”) at 225°C. The temperature dependence of the ²H line shapes show that the jump motion is thermally activated, with a median activation energy, E_a = 15 kcal/mol, and a distribution of activation energies of less than ±2 kcal/mol. The jump rate was also determined from the magnitude of the anisotropic T₂ relaxation associated with ²H line shapes and from the curvature of inversion recovery intensity data. The experimental activation energy for jumps is comparable to the intramolecular potential barrier for rotation about phenylene vinylene bonds. ²H NMR provides a method for determining the phenylene-vinylene rotational barrier in pristine PPV, and may potentially be used to study conjugation in conducting films.     

Electrochemical properties and photoelectrochemical response of vacuum-deposited poly(p-phenylene) thin films

The electrochemical properties of a poly(p-phenylene) (PPP) thin film prepared by vacuum deposition were investigated by cyclic voltammetry in organic and aqueous media with a lithium perchlorate electrolyte. The PPP thin film was able to undergo both n-doping and p-doping reversibly. In an aqueous medium, the cyclic voltammograms indicated the characteristic loop in a potential sweep. The loop was ascribed to the charge transfer on the PPP film surface and to an accumullation effect of the charge in the PPP film. A photocurrent was observed at the PPP film under UV light irradiation.     

Aggregation of sulfonated poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) in dilute solutions

The viscosities of dilute solutions of poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide), PPTS, in dimethylacetamide, water, and their mixtures were determined. The reduced viscosity plot in dimethylacetamide shows a negative slope. When the water content in the mixed solvent in 90% or higher, there is an upswing in the reduced viscosity values at concentrations below 0.1 g/dL. The latter behavior suggests a “polyelectrolyte” effect. However, an association model was found to be able to explain the viscosity behaviors in both solvents. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Synthesis and Kerr effect of p-phenylene vinylene oligomers

The molecular dynamics of p-phenylene vinylene (PPV) oligomers, synthesised by a condensation reaction and separated by molecular distillation, have been investigated using the electrooptic Kerr effect. The experimental Kerr constants of these materials change sign from positive to negative in going from n = 1 to n = 2 and are not in good agreement with theoretical results. The discrepancies, which increase in magnitude as n increases, can be attributed to solvent-solute interactions, the nonplanar nature of PPV oligomers, or the nonvalidity of the additivity scheme chosen for calculation of theoretical quantities. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Dielectric relaxation of poly(phenylene sulfide) containing a fraction of rigid amorphous phase

The dielectric relaxation behavior of poly(phenylene sulfide), PPS, has been investigated from room temperature to 180°C. This study was undertaken to examine the mobility of the amorphous phase through the glass transition region, to determine the contribution that rigid amorphous phase material makes to the relaxation process. Semicrystalline samples contain a fraction of the rigid amorphous phase, which was determined from the heat capacity increment at the glass transition, using degree of crystallinity determined from x-ray scattering. In the dielectric experiment, we measured the temperature and frequency dependence of the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function. ε″ vs. ε′ was used to determine the dielectric relaxation intensity, δε = ε_s–ε∞, at temperatures above the glass transition. For amorphous PPS, δε decreases as temperature increases, while for all semicrystalline PPS, δε increases with temperature. The ratio of semicrystalline intensity to amorphous intensity determines the total fraction of dipoles which are already relaxed at a given temperature. Results indicate that more and more rigid amorphous phase material relaxes as the temperature is increased. This provides the first evidence that rigid amorphous phase material in PPS contains chains that possess different levels of molecular mobility. Finally, to the temperature of the loss peak maximum, at a given frequency, we assign the value of the dielectric T_g. For both melt and cold crystallization, the dielectric T_g systematically decreases as the crystallization temperature increases, and as the fraction of rigid amorphous phase decreases.     

Non-isothermal crystalliztion kinetics of poly(phenylene sulfide) with low crosslinking levels

Poly(phenylene sulfide) (PPS) with different crosslinking levels was successfully fabricated by means of high- temperature isothermal treatment (IT). The crosslinking degree of PPS was increased with IT time as revealed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and dynamic viscosity measurements. Its influence on the non-isothermal crystallization behaviors of PPS was studied by differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The crystallization peak temperature of PPS with 6 h IT was 15 K higher than that of the one with 2 h IT at 30 K/min cooling rate. The non-isothermal crystallization data were also analyzed based on the Ozawa model. The Ozawa exponent m decreased from 3.5 to 2.2 at 232℃ with the increase of the IT time, suggestive of intensive thermal oxidative crosslinking reducing the crystallite dimension as PPS crystal grew. The reduced cooling crystallization function K(T) was indicative of the larger activation energy of crosslinked PPS chain diffusion into crystal lattice, resulting in a slow crystal growth rate. Additionally, the overall crystallization rate of PPS was also accelerated with the increase of crosslinking degree from the observation of polarized optical micrograph. These results indicated that the chemical crosslinked points and network structures formed during the high-temperature isothermal treatment acted as the effective nucleating sites, which greatly promoted the crystallization process of PPS and changed the type of nucleation and the geometry of crystal growth accordingly.     

Molecular dynamics simulations of a poly(p-phenylene) oligomer

We have studied the conformation and coefficient of thermal expansion in the poly(p-phenylene) oligomer p-sexiphenyl (C₃₆H₂₆) by molecular dynamics simulations. Studies of the backbone phenyl–phenyl torsion angle in a simulated p-sexiphenyl crystal at room temperature indicate the presence of torsional librations of approximately ±20°. Further analysis of the phenyl–phenyl backbone torsion angle in less closely packed regions of the simulated crystal (crystal ends) indicate the presence of 180° phenyl ring flips, in agreement with solid-state deuterium NMR data on poly(p-phenylene oligomers). The linear coefficient of thermal expansion was also calculated and found to be negative, in qualitative agreement with experimental data on rigid-rod compounds. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Structure and property development in poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) during heat treatment under tension

The evolution of several structural characteristics during isothermal heat treatment of poly(p-phenylene terephthalamide) was studied. In this work, heat treatment was interrupted after different treatment times, with the specimens immediately quenched to room temperature. These specimens were then characterized by tensile testing, wide- and small-angle x-ray scattering, and optical microscopy. Structural parameters obtained from these measurements relate to crystal perfection (via the paracrystalline axial distortion parameter), axial crystallite size, transverse crystallite size, degree of chain misorientation, and degree of pleating. Structural and mechanical parameters were then plotted against heat-treatment time to obtain kinetic isotherms for each parameter. The kinetics of the removal of chain misorientation parallels that of tensile modulus increase under all conditions. Of the other structural parameters, only the kinetics of pleat removal mimics that of modulus change, indicating that pleat removal is the effective cause of increased chain alignment and thereby of increased axial stiffness. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The effect of solvents and polyethylene glycol on the synthesis of linear and cyclic poly(methylene sulfide)

The condensation polymerization of sodium sulfide with methylene chloride in various solvents was studied in order to assess the influence of polarity on the yield and composition of condensation products. The effect of addition of polyethylene glycol was also studied. It has been found that the overall yield of polythiomethylenes rises from 13.9% in methanol to 85.2% (methanol, PEG15000). The use of solvents of higher polarity promotes the linear oligomers, whereas in methanol the cyclic products predominate. In presence of PEG the this equilibrium is shifted towards tetrathiane. The observed phenomena are discussed in terms of solvents polarity and reaction media viscosity. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Poly(p-phenylene benzobisoxazole)/Poly(pyridobisimidazole) Block Copolymers

Poly(p-phenylene benzobisoxazole)/poly(pyridobisimidazole) block copolymers (PBO-b-PIPD) were prepared by introducing poly(pyridobisimidazole) (PIPD) moieties into the main chains of poly(p-phenylene benzobisoxazole) (PBO) in order to enhance its photostability. PBO and copolymer fibers were directly prepared from the polymerization solutions by dry-jet wet-spinning. Chemical structures and molecular chains arrangement of the block copolymers were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, solid-state ¹³C-NMR and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). Thermal stability of the copolymers was investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) in nitrogen. Thin films of PBO and copolymers were cast from methanesulfonic acid (MSA) solutions. Both the films and fibers were exposed to UV light to determine their photostability. Changes in the chemical structures and surface morphologies of the films were characterized by FTIR spectra and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), respectively. After UV light exposure, the retention of strength for copolymer fibers is improved compared to PBO fibers. The results revealed that copolymers suffered less photodegradation in comparison with homopolymer. The mechanism for the improved photostability of the copolymers was discussed.