Dielectric relaxation study of atactic poly(epichlorohydrin)/poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) blends

Binary blends of atactic poly(epichlorohydrin) (aPECH) and poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) were investigated as a function of blend composition and crystallization conditions by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy. The quenched samples were found to be miscible in the whole composition range by detecting only one glass transition relaxation, for each composition, which could be closely described by the Gorden-Taylor equation. The cold-crystallized blends displayed two glass transition relaxations at all blend ratios indicating the coexisting of two amorphous populations: a pure aPECH phase dispersed mainly in the interfibrillar zones and a mixed amorphous phase held between crystal lamellae. The interlamellar trapping of aPECH was small and decreases with increasing the overall PHB content in the blend. At high crystallization temperatures the aPECH molecules was found to reside mainly in the interfibrillar regions due to its high mobility relative to the crystal growth rate of PHB. Our results suggest that because the intersegmental interaction in aPECH/PHB blends is weak, the mobility of the amorphous component at a given crystallization temperature decides diluent segregation.     

Correlation between melting behavior and ringed spherulites in poly(trimethylene terephthalate)

The lamellar types as revealed by the multiple melting peaks and possible mechanisms of ringed spherulites in poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) were analyzed with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), optical microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Several interesting correlations were found. If PTT is melt‐crystallized in a certain temperature range, it shows multiple melting peaks and rings in PTT. Once rings are formed in the original melt‐crystallized PTT, they do not disappear but persist and become even more apparent upon postcrystallization annealing at higher temperatures. Furthermore, for PTT that is capable of exhibiting ringed spherulites, a temperature range exists where rings do not form. This behavior can be interpreted in relation with the demonstrated thermal behavior in PTT. Reorganization took place upon postcrystallization scanning or annealing to or at higher temperatures. A postulation was proposed and rigorously tested with evidence to correlate the ringed spherulites and melting behavior. Rings in PTT may be related to multiple lamellae in the spherulites. Consequently, if a temperature of crystallization is selected so that there is only one type of lamella in the spherulites, then there should be no rings. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 80–93, 2002     

Linear versus nonlinear determinations of equilibrium melting temperatures of poly(trimethylene terephthalate) and miscible blend with poly(ether imide) exhibiting multiple melting peaks

Multiple melting peaks in some semicrystalline polymers such as poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) have caused some difficulty in estimating accurately the equilibrium melting points. PTT forms a miscible blend with amorphous poly(ether imide) (PEI); for comparison purposes, a miscible system of a fixed composition (PTT/PEI of weight ratio = 9/1) was determined. PTT and its miscible blend both exhibited dual melting peaks (labeled as low and high peaks: T_m,L, T_m,H), and the first peaks (T_m,L), not the second peak (T_m,H), should be used for extrapolation. The equilibrium melting temperatures (T) of neat PTT and its blend PTT/PEI (9/1) were 245.2 and 242.4 °C, respectively, by the linear Hoffman–Weeks treatment using the corrected values of T_m,L (i.e., values obtained using a heating rate close to zero). Linear and nonlinear treatments led to a significant difference in estimated T, and the relative validity of these two methods is discussed. The nonlinear estimate yielded a higher value by about 27.3 °C for neat PTT and 23.1 °C for the PTT/PEI (9/1) blend, respectively (also the correction in T_m,L at the same condition mentioned previously). Results showed melting depression in miscible PTT/PEI (9/1). In addition, the T value of neat PTT was higher than that of PTT/PEI (9/1) owing to much thicker and more‐perfect crystals in neat PTT. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 40: 1571–1581, 2002     

Effect of small amount of poly(ethylene naphthalate) on isothermal crystallization and spherulitic morphology of poly(trimethylene terephthalate)

The effect of a small amount of poly(ethylene naphthalate) (PEN) in its blends with poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) on isothermal melt-crystallization kinetics and spherulitic morphology of the blends was thoroughly investigated. The maximum PEN content in the blends was 9 wt%. Due to the single composition-dependent glass transition temperature (T_g) that was observed for each blend, these blends appeared to be miscible in the amorphous state. After isothermal crystallization from the melt state, the neat PTT and its blends with PEN exhibited either double or triple melting endotherms. The triple endothermic peaks were observed in both the neat PTT and the blends when being crystallized at crystallization temperatures (T_c) of less than or equal to 195 °C. The equilibrium melting temperature () for the neat PTT was determined based on the linear Hoffman–Weeks extrapolative method to be 248 °C. Such values for the blends were found to decrease with the addition and increasing amount of PEN. Both the neat PTT and the blends were isothermally crystallized over the T_c range of 190–205 °C. At a given T_c, the 97PTT/3PEN blend exhibited a half-time of crystallization (t_0.5) value that was lower, while it exhibited reciprocal half-time (), Avrami rate constant (K_A), and spherulitic growth rate (G) values that were greater, than those of the neat PTT. With further increase in the PEN content, the t_0.5 value increased, while the , K_A, and G values decreased. Analysis of the G values based on the Lauritzen–Hoffman's (LH) secondary nucleation theory showed that the neat PTT and the 91PTT/9PEN blend exhibited a regime II→III transition at 194 °C (467.2 K), while no regime transition was observed for the other two blends. The lateral and the fold surface free energies (σ and σ_e) and the work of chain folding (q) for the neat PTT and the blends were 19.4, 30.2–46.3 erg cm⁻², and 2.4–3.6 kcal mol⁻¹, respectively. Lastly, the effect of both the T_c and the PEN content on morphology and texture of the PTT spherulites was also investigated and the results showed that the texture of the spherulites became coarser with increasing T_c and PEN content.     

Biodegradable poly(alkylene succinate) blends: Thermal behavior and miscibility study

New binary blends composed of poly(ethylene succinate) and poly(propylene succinate) or poly(ethylene succinate) and poly(butylene succinate) were prepared. Both PESu/PPSu and PESu/PBSu systems belong to semicrystalline/semicrystalline pairs. The miscibility and crystallization behavior was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD), and polarizing light microscopy (PLM). Blends of PESu and PPSu exhibited a single composition dependent glass transition temperature over the entire range of composition, indicating that the system is miscible. The melting point depression of the high melting temperature component, PESu, was analyzed according to the Nishi‐Wang equation. A negative polymer–polymer interaction parameter was obtained, indicating that the blends are thermodynamically miscible in the melt. The two components crystallized sequentially when the blends were cooled rapidly to a low temperature. DSC traces of PESu/PBSu blends after quenching showed two distinct composition dependent glass transition temperatures between those of the neat polymers, showing that the polymers are partially miscible. The amorphous PESu/PBSu blends in the intermediate compositions showed three cold‐crystallization peaks, indicating the influence of mixing. The crystallization rates of PBSu were reduced and those of PESu were increased. WAXD showed reduced crystallinity and peak broadening in the patterns of the blends of intermediate compositions, while no spherulites could be detected by PLM. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 584–597, 2006     

Non-isothermal crystallization kinetics of poly(trimethylene terephthalate)/poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) blends

The glass-transition temperature and non-isothermal crystallization of poly(trimethylene terephthalate)/poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate) (PTT/PEN) blends were investigated by using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The results suggested that the binary blends showed different crystallization and melting behaviors due to their different component of PTT and PEN. All of the samples exhibited a single glass-transition temperature, indicating that the component PTT and PEN were miscible in amorphous phase. The value of T_g predicted well by Gordon-Taylor equation decreased gradually with increasing of PTT content. The commonly used Avrami equation modified by Jeziorny, Ozawa theory and the method developed by Mo were used, respectively, to fit the primary stage of non-isothermal crystallization. The kinetic parameters suggested that the PTT content improved the crystallization of PEN in the binary blend. The crystallization growth dimension, crystallization rate and the degree of crystallinity of the blends were increased with the increasing content of PTT. The effective activation energy calculated by the advanced iso-conversional method developed by Vyazovkin also concluded that the value of E_a depended not only on the system but also on temperature, that is, the binary blend with more PTT component had higher crystallization ability and the crystallization ability is increased with increasing temperature. The kinetic parameters U^* and K_g were also determined, respectively, by the Hoffman-Lauritzen theory.     

Thermal and crystallization characteristics of poly(trimethylene terephthalate)/poly(ethylene naphthalate) blends

Poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT)/poly(ethylene naphthalate) (PEN) blends were miscible in the amorphous state in all of the blend compositions studied, as evidenced by a single, composition-dependent glass transition temperature (T_g) observed for each blend composition. The variation in the T_g value with the blend composition was well predicted by the Gordon-Taylor equation, with the fitting parameter being 0.57. The cold-crystallization peak temperature decreased with increasing PTT content, while the melt-crystallization peak temperature decreased with increasing amount of the minor component. The subsequent melting behavior after both cold- and melt-crystallization exhibited melting point depression, in which the observed melting temperatures decreased with increasing amount of the minor component. During melt-crystallization, both components in the blends crystallized concurrently just to form their own crystals. The blend with 60% w/w of PTT exhibited the lowest total apparent degree of crystallinity.     

Miscibility,melting, and crystallization of poly(butylene‐2,6‐naphthalate)/poly(ether imide) blends

We prepared blends of poly(butylene‐2,6‐naphthalate) (PBN) and poly(ether imide) (PEI) by solution‐casting from dichloroacetic acid solutions. The miscibility, crystallization, and melting behavior of the blends were investigated with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis. PBN was miscible with PEI over the entire range of compositions, as shown by the existence of single composition‐dependent glass‐transition temperatures. In addition, a negative polymer–polymer interaction parameter was calculated, with the Nishi–Wang equation, based on the melting depression of PBN. In nonisothermal crystallization investigations, the depression of the crystallization temperature of PBN depended on the composition of the blend and the cooling rate; the presence of PEI reduced the number of PBN segments migrating to the crystallite/melt interface. Melting, recrystallization, and remelting processes occurring during the DSC heating scan caused the occurrence of multiple melting endotherms for PBN. We explored the effects of various experimental conditions on the melting behavior of PBN/PEI blends. The extent of recrystallization of the PBN component during DSC heating scans decreased as the PEI content, the heating rate, the crystallization temperature, and the crystallization time increased. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 1694–1704, 2004     

Thermal,crystallization, mechanical,and rheological characteristics of poly(trimethylene terephthalate)/poly(ethylene terephthalate) blends

Blends of poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) and poly(ethylene terephthalate) in the amorphous state were miscible in all of the blend compositions studied, as evidenced by a single, composition‐dependent glass‐transition temperature observed for each blend composition. The variation in the glass‐transition temperature with the blend composition was well predicted by the Gordon–Taylor equation, with the fitting parameter being 0.91. The cold‐crystallization (peak) temperature decreased with an increasing PTT content, whereas the melt‐crystallization (peak) temperature decreased with an increasing amount of the minor component. The subsequent melting behavior after both cold and melt crystallizations exhibited melting point depression behavior in which the observed melting temperatures decreased with an increasing amount of the minor component of the blends. During crystallization, the pure components crystallized simultaneously just to form their own crystals. The blend having 50 wt % of PTT showed the lowest apparent degree of crystallinity and the lowest tensile‐strength values. The steady shear viscosity values for the pure components and the blends decreased slightly with an increasing shear rate (within the shear rate range of 0.25–25 s^?1); those of the blends were lower than those of the pure components. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 676–686, 2004     

Glass transition,crystallization, and morphology relationships in miscible poly(aryl ether ketones) and poly(ether imide) blends

The relationships among glass transition, crystallization, melting, and crystal morphology of poly(aryl ether ketone) (PAEK)/poly(other imide) (PEI) blends was studied by thermal, optical and small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) methods. Two types of PAEK were chosen for this work: poly(aryl ether ether ketone), PEEK, and poly(aryl ether ketone ketone), PEKK, which have distinctly different crystallization rates. Both PAEKs show complete miscibility with PEI in the amorphous phase. As PAEK crystallizes, the noncrystallizable PEI component is rejected from the crystalline region, resulting in a broad amorphous population, which was indicated by the broadening and the increase of T_g over that of the purely amorphous mixture. The presence of the PEI component significantly decreases the bulk crystallization and crystal growth rate of PAEK, but the equilibrium melting temperature and crystal surface free energies are not affected. The morphology of the PEI segregation was investigated by SAXS measurements. The results indicated that the inter(lamellar-bundle) PEI trapping morphology was dominant in the PEEK/PEI blends under rapid crystallization conditions, whereas the interspherulitic morphology was dominant in the slow crystallizing PEKK/PEI blends. These morphologies were qualitatively explained by the expression δ=D/G, where G was the crystal growth rate and D was the mutual diffusion coefficient. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Ring‐banded spherulites in poly(pentamethylene terephthalate): A model of waving and spiraling lamellae

A new aryl polyester, poly(pentamethylene terephthalate) (PPT) with five methylene groups in the repeat unit, was synthesized. Its multiple‐melting behavior and crystal structure were analyzed with differential scanning calorimetry and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction. In addition, the spherulitic/lamellar morphology of melt‐crystallized PPT was investigated. Typical Maltese‐cross spherulites (with no rings) were seen in melt‐crystallized PPT at low temperatures (70–90 °C), but ring patterns were seen in PPT crystallized only at temperatures ranging from 100 to 115 °C, whereas rings disappeared with crystallization above 120 °C. The mechanisms of the rings in PPT were explained with several coordinated directional changes (wavy changes, twisting changes, and combinations) in the lamellae during growth. Scanning electron microscopy, in combination with atomic force microscopy, further proved that the ringed spherulites originated from the aggregation of sufficient numbers of edge‐on lamellar crystals; the radial‐growth edge‐on/flat‐on lamellae could be twisted and/or waved to form realistic band patterns. A postulated model properly described a possible origin of the ring bands through combined mechanisms of waving (zigzagging) and twisting (spiraling) of the lamellae during crystallization. Superimposed twisting and/or wavy models during crystallization were examined as examples. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 4421–4432, 2004     

聚L-乳酸/聚(天冬氨酸-co-乳酸)共混物的制备及其相容性研究

采用氯仿/乙醇共沸溶液浇铸法制备了混合均匀的聚L-乳酸/聚(天冬氨酸-co-乳酸)共混物(PLLA/PAL)体系.研究了PLLA/PAL共混体系的热性能、结晶行为、形态结构和力学性能,评价了PLLA和PAL之间的相容性.结果表明,PAL对PLLA的结晶行为和热性能产生了较大的影响,共混物的结晶度较低,共混体系中部分PAL会进入PLLA球晶的片晶而导致PLLA球晶结构不完善,熔点降低.PAL的含量小于20%的PLLA/PAL共混物的拉伸强度和断裂延伸率均高于纯PLLA.PLLA和PAL分子链相互缠结,产生的氢键使分子链间存在较强的相互作用,具有较好的相容性.     

Melt-crystallization behavior and isothermal crystallization kinetics of crystalline/crystalline blends of poly(ethylene terephthalate)/poly(trimethylene terephthalate)

The melt-crystallization and isothermal melt-crystallization kinetics of poly(ethylene terephthalate)/poly(trimethylene terephthalate) blends (PET/PTT) were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarized optical microscopy. Although PET and PTT in the binary blends are miscible at amorphous state, they will crystallize individually when cooled from the melt. In the DSC measurements, PET component with higher supercooling degree will crystallize first, and then the crystallite of PET will be the nucleating agent for PTT, which induce the crystallization of PTT at higher temperature. On the other hand, in both blends of PET80/PTT20 and PET60/PTT40, the PET component will crystallize at higher temperature with faster crystallization rate due to the dilute effect of PTT. So the commingled minor addition of one component to another helps to improve the crystallization of the blends. For blends of PET20/PTT80 and PET40/PTT60, isothermal crystallization kinetics evaluated in terms of the Avrami equation suggest different crystallization mechanisms occurred. The more PET content in blends, the fast crystallization rate is. The Avrami exponent, n = 3, suggests a three-dimensional growth of the crystals in both blends, which is further demonstrated by the spherulites formed in all blends. The crystalline blends show multiple-melting peaks during heating process.     

Miscibility,crystallization kinetics,and morphology of poly(β‐hydroxybutyrate) and poly(methyl acrylate) blends

The miscibility, spherulite growth kinetics, and morphology of binary blends of poly(β‐hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) and poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA) were studied with differential scanning calorimetry, optical microscopy, and small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS). As the PMA content increases in the blends, the glass‐transition temperature and cold‐crystallization temperature increase, but the melting point decreases. The interaction parameter between PHB and PMA, obtained from an analysis of the equilibrium‐melting‐point depression, is −0.074. The presence of an amorphous PMA component results in a reduction in the rate of spherulite growth of PHB. The radial growth rates of spherulites were analyzed with the Lauritzen–Hoffman model. The spherulites of PHB were volume‐filled, indicating the inclusion of PMA within the spherulites. The long period obtained from SAXS increases with increased PMA content, implying that the amorphous PMA is entrapped in the interlamellar region of PHB during the crystallization process of PHB. All the results presented show that PHB and PMA are miscible in the melt. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 38: 1860–1867, 2000     

Relationships between ringed spherulitic morphology and miscibility in blends of poly(ɛ-caprolactone) with poly(benzyl methacrylate) versus poly(phenyl methacrylate)

 Ringed spherulites are an interesting phenomenon that is observed only in very few miscible systems. For the first time, the relationship between the state of chain intermixing and the ring-band pattern was demonstrated. Two previously demonstrated miscible blend systems, poly(ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) with poly(benzyl methacrylate) (PBzMA) and PCL with poly(phenyl methacrylate) (PPhMA), were studied in order to understand the mechanism of ring-band formation in the spherulites and the relationships between the ring-band pattern and the state of miscibility. In both miscible PCL/PBzMA and PCL/PPhMA systems, extinction rings were observed within the PCL spherulites. In the PCL/PBzMA blend, the extinction rings are not as distinct (owing to distortion) as those in the PCL/PPhMA blend system. Analysis was performed and discussions were made to reveal relationships between miscibility, interaction strength, and the pattern of the ring bands in the PCL spherulites in polymeric mixtures. Received: 5 January 2000/Accepted: 14 March 2000     

PPEKK/PEI共混物的相容性及拉伸性能

作为相容体系 ,聚芳醚酮与聚醚酰亚胺 (ＰＥＩ)共混物体系的研究受到了研究者的重视[1～ 4] .由于现在已商品化的聚芳醚酮基本上都是半结晶型聚合物 ,所以有有关无定型聚芳醚酮与聚醚酰亚胺共混物的研究鲜见报道 .含二氮杂萘酮结构聚芳醚酮酮 (ＰＰＥＫＫ)是一种新型耐高温聚合物 ,相比于已经商品化的各种聚芳醚酮 ,ＰＰＥＫＫ除具有优异的综合性能外 ,它最大的特点表现在以下两方面 ,ＰＰＥＫＫ耐热性突出 ,玻璃化转变温度 (Ｔｇ)为 2 4 5℃左右 ,远高于各种商品化的聚芳醚酮 ;ＰＰＥＫＫ为无定型聚合物 ,易溶于多种有机极性溶剂 ,大大的扩…     

聚乙烯醇/聚乙烯基吡咯烷酮共混体系相容性研究

用DSC、FTIR、SAXS和测定Flory-Huggins相互作用参数等方法对聚乙二醇(PVA1)/聚乙烯基吡咯烷酮(PVP)共混体系的研究。结果表明,该体系具有完全互容的性质。共混物只有一个玻璃化转变温度。用DMSO作溶剂浇铸的膜光学透明。PVA1的长周期和片晶厚度均随PVP含量增加而增大,但后者增大的幅度比前者小得多,表明PVP和PVA1的非晶部分形成均相并夹入到球晶内部。共混物中PVP羰基吸收峰和PVA1的羟基吸收峰与相应均聚物相比,在红外光谱图中皆向低频方向迁移,迁移波数随第二组分含量的增加而增大。表明二者间有氢键生成。用平衡熔点计算的Flory-Huggins相互作用参数为-0.88。     

Ringed spherulites in ternary polymer blends of poly(<Emphasis Type="Italic">ε</Emphasis>-caprolactone), poly(styrene-<Emphasis Type="Italic">co</Emphasis>-acrylonitrile), and polymethacrylate

The relationship between ringed spherulite morphology, crystallization regimes/kinetics, and molecular interactions in miscible ternary blends of poly(-caprolactone) (PCL), poly(benzyl methacrylate) (PBzMA), and poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile) (SAN) was investigated by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarized optical microscopy (POM), and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). The interactions resulted in the deviation of both experimental and calculated T_gs and formation of the specific morphology of the spherulitic structure. Ring-banded spherulites were observed in the PCL/PBzMA/SAN ternary blends. The width of ring bands changed with the blend ratio and the crystallization temperature. Additionally, both composition and wt% of AN in the SAN copolymer had an apparent effect on the morphology of PCL spherulites. Both the crystallization structure of lamellae and molecular interactions greatly influenced the ring bands of PCL spherulites. Furthermore, by using the Flory–Huggins approximation, the depression of the melting point showed that interactions in the PCL/PBzMA/SAN-17 blend were greater than in the PCL/PBzMA/SAN-25 blend. In the ternary blends, the great molecular interactions between amorphous and crystalline polymer resulted in better homogeneity and a larger band period of the extinction rings in the PCL spherulites.     

Synergistic mechanical behaviour and improved processability of poly(ether imide) by blending with poly(trimethylene terephthalate)

Fully miscible poly(ether imide) (PEI)/poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) blends were obtained by melt mixing in an extruder followed by injection moulding. The viscosity of PEI, represented by the pressure at the extruder output, almost halved upon the addition of only 10% PTT, allowing the use of PEI in applications where either complex parts or thin sections must be moulded. The modulus of elasticity showed a synergistic behaviour which was absolute (modulus higher than that of any of the two components) in the blend with 10% PTT. This was attributed mainly to the decrease in specific volume upon blending. The additional absolute synergism in the yield stress of PEI‐rich blends and their ductile nature depict a set of properties that make these new materials attractive in a number of new applications. Copyright ­© 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

聚乙烯醇/聚乙烯基吡咯烷酮共混体系的结晶行为

用DSC、WAXD和SAXS研究了聚乙烯醇(PVAl)/聚乙烯基吡咯烷酮(PVP)共混体系的结晶行为.PVAl的结晶度随PVP含量增加而减少,并存在结晶度为零的组成(PVAl)的重量分数约为50％.与纯PVAl相比,共混物的温度区间T_m-T_g减小,表明PVP对PVAl的结晶起抑制作用.共混物中PVAl的结晶速度下降,具体表现为PVAl过冷区随PVP含量增加而扩大,动力学速度常数减小,球晶增长速度下降.纯PVAl和共混体系的等温结晶速率均遵循Avrami方程.退火样品的长周期、片晶厚度和过渡层厚度大于相同组成未退火样品.两者长周期随PVP含量增长加显著增大,片晶厚度增长次之,过渡层厚度变化不大.