Structure,morphology, and crystallization process of isotactic polypropylene/hydrogenated hydrocarbon resin blends

The structure, morphology, and isothermal and nonisothermal crystallization of isotactic polypropylene/low‐molecular‐mass hydrocarbon resin blends (iPP/HR) (up to 20% in weight of HR) have been studied, using optical and electron microscopy, wide‐ and small‐angle X‐ray and differential scanning calorimetry. New structures and morphologies can be activated, using appropriate preparation and crystallization conditions and blend composition. For every composition and crystallization condition, iPP crystallizes in α‐form, with a spherulitic morphology. The size of iPP spherulites increases with resin content, whereas the long period decreases. In the range of crystallization temperatures investigated, HR modifies the birefringence of iPP spherulites, favoring the formation of radial lamellae and changing the ratio between tangential and radial lamellae. Spherulitic radial growth rates, overall crystallization rates, and melting temperatures are strongly affected by resin, monotonically decreasing with resin content. This confirms miscibility in the melt between the two components of the blends. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 3368–3379, 2004     

Blends of the β-modification of polypropylene

Preparation, crystallization and melting characteristics of blends of β-nucleated isotactic polypropylene with different elastomers and polyethylenes were studied. Blends of β-polypropylene can be prepared if the polymer additive is amorphous or has negligible α-nucleating effect during the crystallization of polypropylene.     

Thermal Analysis of Crystalline Polymer Blends

PEI/PEEK blends have been prepared and analysed by DSC. The blends are compatible over the full composition range in that amorphous samples are transparent and exhibit a single T_g varying with composition between the limits of the two components. The crystallisation kinetics of PEEK from the blend melt has been measured by DSC but the technique is limited to blend compositions above 20% PEEK. The use of a polarised light microscope to measure crystallization kinetics and melting behaviour of blends with compositions as low as 2 and 5% PEEK is discussed. In general, since the extent rather than the rate of crystallization is measured directly, the polarised light microscopy extends the measurement to slower rates and so to a wider temperature range. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Morphology development during isothermal crystallization. I. Isotactic and atactic polypropylene blends

Morphology development during isothermal crystallization in equal molecular weight isotactic polypropylene (iPP) and atactic polypropylene (aPP) blends was studied with time‐resolved simultaneous small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) and wide‐angle X‐ray scattering methods with synchrotron radiation. The final long period obtained after crystallization at 115 °C was nearly independent of blend composition up to 50 wt % aPP but showed an increase in the 80 wt % aPP blend. At a high crystallization temperature (137.5 °C), the increase in the final long period with aPP content was significant, and the evolution of iPP crystallinity was also affected. However, at low crystallization temperatures, the additive decrease of the crystallinity and the constant melting point with increasing aPP content suggest that the crystallizability and crystal morphology of iPP is not a strong function of aPP. The iPP/aPP blends showed a strong low‐angle SAXS upturn as a function of composition, which suggests the segregation of aPP on size scales larger than the lamellar spacing. A detailed analysis of the SAXS patterns indicates that aPP disrupts the ordering within the lamellar stacking. The results are generally consistent with predominantly interfibrillar incorporation of the aPP diluent within the microstructure, with only modest interlamellar incorporation dependent on the crystallization temperature. The findings can be attributed to the partial miscibility/mixing of the aPP and iPP components in the blend before crystallization, depending on the crystallization undercooling. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 38: 2580–2590, 2000     

Energetic potential and kinetic behavior of peats

The miscibility of blends of isotactic polypropylene and propylene-1-hexene (PH) copolymers with 11 and 21 mol% of 1-hexene (PH11 and PH21, respectively) has been studied theoretically and using DSC, DMA, and AFM techniques. Using experimental PVT data, the solubility parameter approach leads to a critical difference in 1-hexene content for melt miscibility of 17 mass% (~11 mol%) at 200 °C and 0.1 MPa. The theoretical window for miscibility is in close agreement with thermal properties of the blends. The glass transition (T _g) of miscible blends (iPP/PH11 and PH11/PH21) decreases proportionally to the content of PH having the lowest T _g, while immiscible blends (iPP/PH21) display invariable T _g with blend composition. The same trend was extracted from the analysis of the β-relaxation by dynamic mechanical analysis. Room temperature AFM images of blends quenched from 200 °C into liquid nitrogen confirm phase segregation of iPP/PH21 in domains of 1–5 microns, while the AFM images of iPP/PH11 and PH11/PH21 lack any obvious signature of phase separation prior to crystallization.     

Miscibility behaviour of blends of a thermoplastic polyester polyurethane with vinyl polymers

A method based on the intrinsic viscosities of transfer has been used to predict miscibility of polymer blends. This method has been applied to study the change in the phase behaviour of a microphase separated polyester polyurethane (PSPU) on blending with polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) and a vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer (VCVAc). The PVC/PSPU blends are found to exhibit complete miscibility over the entire composition range. PVAc/PSPU blends show immiscibility while VCVAc/PSPU blends show partial miscibility. Thermal analysis and scanning electron microscopic studies of the blend films have confirmed the results evaluated on the basis of the viscosity method.     

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     

Effects of composition on microstructure and crystallization behavior for impact polypropylene copolymer investigated by restructuring the complex core-shell dispersed particles in ternary blends

A series of ternary blends of polypropylene/ethylene-propylene random copolymer/ethylene-propylene segmented copolymer(HPP/EPR/Eb P) whose microstructures are similar to those of impact polypropylene copolymer(IPC) were prepared in order to systematically investigate the effects of composition on microstructure and crystallization behavior of IPC. The observation of primary phase morphology reveals that the dispersed phase with core-shell structure could be rebuilt in certain composition and excessive EPR leads to a bicontinuous phase structure in ternary blends. After undergoing same quiescent crystallization including isothermal and non-isothermal crystallization, these blend samples exhibit special composition-dependent melting behavior, i.e., the melting point increases markedly with the increase of EPR content until it turns down at a critical content(about 30 wt%). The crystallization behavior is mainly ascribed to the different nucleation abilities. It is suggested that although the compatibility between EPR and HPP components becomes worse with the increase of EPR content due to the increased interfacial area and the decreased concentration of Eb P, higher EPR content in the blend facilitates to heterogeneous nucleation except for the appearance of obvious bicontinuous phase structure.     

Crystallization and equilibrium melting behavior of PBT/PETG blends

The results of studies of equilibrium melting point and crystallization behavior of PBT/PETG blends are reported for the first time. A single composition‐dependent glass‐transition temperature is observed in the DSC studies. The isothermal crystallization studies of the blends indicate retardation in crystallization rate as evidenced by the increase in crystallization half time. The retardation in crystallization rate has been attributed to the miscibility in the molten state and the hindrance to the diffusion of crystallizable units. This assumption is further supported by the composition dependence of the crystallization half time. A composition‐dependent melting point depression has been observed which has been attributed to the possible thermodynamic and morphological effects. The interaction parameter calculated by analyzing equilibrium melting point depression shows composition‐dependent negative values confirming the miscibility of the systems. These results are in good agreement with our earlier results on mechanical and dynamic mechanical properties of PBT/PETG blends. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 2439–2444, 1999     

聚碳酸酯与苯乙烯-丙烯腈共聚物共混体系相容性及其对光学性能的影响

利用分子内链段排斥性相互作用理论研究了聚碳酸酯 (PC) 苯乙烯 丙烯腈共聚物 (SAN)共混体系中组份分子量及SAN共聚比例对体系相容性的影响规律 ,确定了获得均相的PC SAN共混体系的条件 ,考察了体系相容性与光学性能之间的关系 .通过实验获得了均相的PC SAN共混物 ;研究结果表明PC聚合度为 90、SAN聚合度为 3 0的PC SAN(S体积含量为 68%)体系共混比在 60∶40附近时体系的双折射能够实现补偿 ,紫外透光率达到 70 %.     

Poly(ε-caprolactone) + unsaturated isophtalic polyester blends: Thermal properties and morphology

Miscibility of blends composed by a linear unsaturated polyester (LUP) with poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) of different molecular weights (M_w = 50 × 10³, 18 × 10³ and 2 × 10³) has been studied. The blends were subjected to different thermal treatments and have been studied by FT-IR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electronic microscopy (ESEM). FT-IR results allow proving the miscibility of the blends at temperatures above the melting temperature of neat PCL. DSC measurements confirm the existence of a crystalline phase corresponding to neat PCL. The crystallization of PCL is observed in a wide range of blends composition, being detected in all the blend compositions when the crystallization time increases. Thermograms show clearly the glass transition temperatures of samples that have been rapidly quenched from the melt. However, the change in the heat flow corresponding to the glass transition temperatures is difficult to detect in samples with high PCL crystallization degree. The analysis of the results indicates that the morphology of the amorphous phase is heterogeneous for LUP + PCL blends and changes depending on the thermal treatment. The ESEM measurements, confirm the heterogeneity of the amorphous phase. The decrease of the molecular weight of the PCL favours the miscibility of the blends.     

Solid-state relaxations in linear low-density (1-octene comonomer), low-density,and high-density polyethylene blends

Extensive thermal and relaxational behavior in the blends of linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) (1-octene comonomer) with low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) have been investigated to elucidate miscibility and molecular relaxations in the crystalline and amorphous phases by using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and a dynamic mechanical thermal analyzer (DMTA). In the LLDPE/LDPE blends, two distinct endotherms during melting and crystallization by DSC were observed supporting the belief that LLDPE and LDPE exclude one another during crystallization. However, the dynamic mechanical β and γ relaxations of the blends indicate that the two constituents are miscible in the amorphous phase, while LLDPE dominates α relaxation. In the LLDPE/HDPE system, there was a single composition-dependent peak during melting and crystallization, and the heat of fusion varied linearly with composition supporting the incorporation of HDPE into the LLDPE crystals. The dynamic mechanical α, β, and γ relaxations of the blends display an intermediate behavior that indicates miscibility in both the crystalline and amorphous phases. In the LDPE/HDPE blend, the melting or crystallization peaks of LDPE were strongly influenced by HDPE. The behavior of the α relaxation was dominated by HDPE, while those of β and γ relaxations were intermediate of the constituents, which were similar to those of the LLDPE/HDPE blends. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 35 : 1633–1642, 1997     

Solvent effect on the miscibility of polymer blends

Starting from the Flory-Huggins theory applied to a polymer/polymer/solvent solution, an expression has been derived showing the overall effect of solvent on the composition of the polymer blend in the final solid state. This expression has been experimentally verified by investigating the miscibility of two polymer blends: polystyrene/poly(α-methylstyrene) cast from tetrahydrofuran and cyclohexane, and polystyrene/poly (methyl methacrylate) obtained from tetrahydrofuran and chloroform. Besides the usual differential scanning calorimetry technique, thermogravimetric analysis might be helpful for detecting the miscibility of polymer blends.     

Blends of normal high density and ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, γ irradiated at a low dose

The kinetics of a nonisothermal crystallization and melting of irradiated with dose of 6 Mrad blends of an ultra-high molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and a high-density polyethylene with normal molecular weight (NMWPE) is investigated by means of DSC. The blends have been prepared at temperature below the flow temperature of UHMWPE: The enthalpies of melting of the polyethylenes increase, while those of their blends decrease after irradiation. The enthalpies of crystallization of the pure polyethylenes are higher, while those of their blends almost do not change or are a bit higher after irradiation. The rates of a nonisothermal crystallization and melting of the polyethylenes increase, while those of the polyethylenes in the blends decrease after irradiation. Thermomechanical measurements under constant load in wide-temperature interval of irradiated polyethylenes and their blends have been made. A high-elastic plateau in viscous-liquid state is established on the thermomechanical curves of UHMWPE, and the blends with high content of UHMWPE. On the basis of results obtained assumptions have been made about the processes taking place in the blends under the action of irradiation, as well as about the character of the mutual influence between the components in the process of irradiation.     

Improvement in Toughness of Polylactide by Melt Blending with Bio-based Poly（ester）urethane

Polylactide （PLA） was successfully toughened by blending with bio-based poly（ester）urethane （TPU） elastomers which contained bio-based polyester soft segments synthesized from biomass diols and diacids. The miscibility, mechanical properties, phase morphology and toughening mechanism of the blend were investigated. Both DSC and DMTA results manifested that the addition of TPU elastomer not only accelerated the crystallization rate, but also increased the final degree of crystallinity, which proved that TPU has limited miscibility with PLA and has functioned as a plasticizer. All the blend samples showed distinct phase separation phenomenon with sea-island structure under SEM observation and the rubber particle size in the PLA matrix increased with the increased contents of TPU. The mechanical property variation of PLA/TPU blends could be quantitatively explained by Wu＇s model. With the variation of TPU, a brittle-ductile transition has been observed for the TPU/PLA blends. When these blends were under tensile stress conditions, the TPU particles could be debonded from the PLA matrix and the blends showed a high ability to induce large area plastic deformation before break, which was important for the dissipation of the breaking energy. Such mechanism was demonstrated by tensile tests and scanning electron microcopy （SEM） observations.     

Miscibility Studies of Dextran/Poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) Blend in Solution

The miscibility of dextran (Dex)/poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) in solution has been investigated in different percentages of the blend components by employing viscosity, density, refractive index and ultrasonic velocity methods at 30 and 50°C, respectively. Ultrasonic velocity and adiabatic compressibility against blend compositions were plotted and found to be linear. The interaction parameters μ and α have been obtained by using the viscosity data. The results indicated that the Dex/PVP blends are miscible in the entire composition range and it was further confirmed by ultrasonic velocity, density, refractive index studies. In addition, the results revealed that the change in temperature has no significant effect on the miscibility of Dex/PVP polymer blend.     

PA6／PET共混体系的X射线衍射分析

用宽角Ｘ射线衍射分析,考察尼龙６／ＰＥＴ共混体系的结晶态,表明在共混物中尼龙６和ＰＥＴ是各自结晶的,即晶相分离的。研究了结晶条件,组份比等对晶态结构的影响,发现共混体系相对结晶度低于纯组份的算术加和,说明共混体系的结晶相分离过程中,由于存在相互作用导致的干扰,使结晶度下降。     

Crystallization behavior of polypropylene/polycarbonate blends

Crystallization behavior and morphology of polypropylene (PP)/polycarbonate (PC) blends have been studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In the study of non-isothermal crystallization of the blends, the phenomenon of multiple crystallization peaks of PP/PC blends was related to the blend morphology in which PP was the dispersed phase as small droplets in the PC matrix. The phenomenon of a single crystallization peak of the PP/PC blends was related to the blend morphology in which PP was a continuous phase; in that case the crystallization peak temperatures of the blends were higher than that of the PP. The isothermal crystallization kinetics of the PP and PP/PC (80/20) blend were described by the Avrami equation. The results showed that the Avrami exponent of the PP/PC (80/20) blend was higher than that of the PP, and the crystallization rate of the PP/PC (80/20) blend was faster than that of the PP. The crystallization rate of the PP and PP/PC (80/20) blend were calculated according to the Hoffmann theory. Both the PP and PP/PC (80/20) blend had maximum crystallization rates. The temperature at the maximum crystallization rate for the PP/PC (80/20) blend was higher than that of the PP.     

Isothermal crystallization kinetics of AB2 hyper-branched polymer (HBP)-filled polypropylene (PP)

In this paper, the isothermal crystallization kinetics of pure polypropylene (PP) and AB₂ hyper-branched polymer (HBP)/PP blends have been investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). During isothermal crystallization, the crystallization rates of the blends are higher than those of PP. Furthermore, in the blends with different HBP contents, the value of t _1/2 became smaller with increasing HBP content; however, the crystallization rate of the blend decreased slightly when the content of HBP is 5 %. An increase in the Avrami exponent means the addition of HBP influences the mechanism of nucleation and the growth of PP crystallites. In addition, the crystallization activation energy of pure PP and HBP/PP blends were also discussed, and the result showed that the crystallization activation energy has decreased remarkably in HBP/PP blends.