Strength of rigid oriented amorphous polymers

A method is proposed for obtaining uniaxially oriented specimens of amorphous unfractionated polymer with a particular oriented chain length. The length of the oriented chains and their molecular weight M_c depend importantly on the conditions under which the polymer is stretched. It is shown that the strength of specimens obtained by stretching at constant M_c increases linearly with the relative fraction of oriented phase. The slope of this linear relation increases with the length of the oriented molecular chains. The ratio of the maximum strength of fully oriented polystyrene to the strength of the unoriented material is found to be 78 instead of the value of 6 given in [6].Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 6, pp. 1048–1053, 1967     

Shrinkage properties of some rigid polymers

Experimental results from a study of the shrinkage of polymers based on epoxy and polyester resins during the polymerization process are presented. The shrinkage was determined by wire strain gauges from the moment of transition of the polymer into a solid medium. An equation has been found which satisfactorily describes the laws governing chemical shrinkage with time."Plastopolimer" Scientific-Manufacturing Union, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 236–240, March–April, 1972.     

Investigation of the processes of thermal and mechanical degradation of polymers using mass spectrometers. Review

The review covers work with mass spectrometers during the last 5 years involving the study of the processes of thermal and mechanical degradation of polymers. Special attention is given to the effect of defects in the macromolecules on the development of the thermal and mechanical degradation processes. It is suggested that the defects of the chemical structure of the macromolecules have an important influence not only on the thermal degradation but also on the development of mechanical failure. The possible uses of mass spectrometry in investigating interfaces are also examined. The initial experiments along these lines are discussed.     

Infrared spectroscopic study of the prefracture state of rigid polymers

A correspondence has been established between the effects of stress and temperature on the half-width and the position of the maximum of the 972-cm^–1 absorption band for polyethylene terephthalate. It is shown that the prefracture state of polyethylene terephthalate is a softened state.A. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 520–523, May–June, 1976.     

Quasi-static method of investigating the dynamic properties of rigid polymers

The mechanical properties of polymers have been investigated at medium impact velocities. The various experimental methods of constructing stress-strain diagrams are compared.     

Comparison of the mass spectra of the volatile products liberated from polymers in the course of mechanical destruction and thermal degradation

The compositions of the volatile products liberated from polymers in the course of mechanical destruction and thermal degradation have been studied and compared by means of mass spectrometry. For those polymers in which in both cases breakdown of the macromolecules begins with the basic chain, the volatile products are the same. For polymers in which breakdown of the molecules in thermal degradation begins with the stripping of side groups, the volatile products of thermal and mechanical degradation are different. This confirms and extends the ideas of the kinetic theory of fracture concerning the relationship between the processes of mechanical fracture and thermal degradation of polymers.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 80–88, 1967     

Use of the time-of-flight mass spectrometer to study the volatile products from mechanical degradation of polymers in a vibration grinder

Problems about the use of the mass-spectrometry method to study the compositions and kinetics of evolution of volatile products formed during the process of mechanical degradation of polymers in a vibration grinder are examined. A vibration ball mill was directly connected to the vacuum chamber of a time-of-flight mass analyzer. By use of this method, mass spectra of the volatile products evolved during vibration grinding of samples of polymethyl methacrylate, polytetrafluoroethylene, polyethylene, and poly-α-methylstyrene have been obtained. The possibility of studying the kinetics of evolution of volatile products as a function of the amplitude and duration of grinding has been shown in the case of polymethyl methacrylate and of polytetrafluoroethylene.     

Study of prefracture states of rigid polymers. 2. Elastic limit and strength

An explanation is offered for the relation between the magnitude of stresses at the elastic limit (strength) and the strains in rigid polymers. The possibility of high-elastic deformation and orienting processes, which have been considered in [1], is also explained here. Expressions are derived that relate the elastic limit to the strain, the modulus of elasticity, the coefficient of thermal expansion, and the Poisson ratio.For communication 1, see [1].A. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 2, pp. 195–201, March–April, 1976.     

Mathematical modelling and computational analysis of enzymatic degradation of xenobiotic polymers

We study the enzymatic degradation of xenobiotic polymers mathematically. As a mathematical model, we derive a linear second-order hyperbolic partial differential equation which governs the evolution of the weight distribution with respect to the molecular weight. Given an initial weight distribution and a final weight distribution, we formulate a problem to determine a degradation rate. We establish a necessary and sufficient condition for which the problem has a local solution. We also introduce a numerical technique based on our analysis, and present a numerical result that we obtained applying weight distributions before and after enzymatic degradation of polyvinyl alcohol.     

Time - temperature superposition in the volume creep of certain rigid polymers

The behavior of rigid polymers under hydrostatic pressure is considered. The time—temperature superposition principle is shown to be applicable to volume creep. The possibility of using the method of reduced variables in cases of variation of hydrostatic pressure is established.     

Study of the prefracture states of rigid polymers 1. Forced high-elastic deformation

It is shown that in the process of extension specimens of a rigid unoriented polymer — polyethylene terephthalate — go over into the oriented state before failure. Various cases of transition to the oriented state are considered: with the formation of a neck and deformation bands, with and without loss of continuity. The degree of molecular orientation of the specimens and their fracture conditions are estimated.A. F. Ioffe Physicotechnical Institute, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Leningrad. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 1, pp. 8–14, January–February, 1976.     

Investigation of the fatigue properties of rigid polymers used in making harmonic drives

The fatigue properties of rigid polymers used for making harmonic drive components have been investigated. Certain data on the fatigue of flexible shells under complex loading conditions have been obtained. The effect of the polymer structure on the fatigue properties of a series of compounds with various antifriction fillers and plasticizing additives is evaluated.Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 6, pp. 1014–1019, November–December, 1970.     

Effect of relaxation parameters on the behavior of rigid polymers in pure shear

The authors have investigated the effect of the relaxation parameters of a rigid polymer corresponding to the individual terms of the relaxation spectrum on the nature of the theoretical curves calculated for creep, strain relaxation and loading at constant strain rate in pure shear on the assumption that the stress-strain relation is described by the generalized Maxwell equation.Institute of Chemical Physics, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 3, pp. 431–436, May–June, 1969.     

Variation of the mechanical properties of rigid thermoplastics under creep conditions

It has been found that as a result of tensile steady-state creep there is a decline in the rigidity and strength of PVC and plexiglas. A method is proposed for estimating the deterioration of the mechanical properties.Mekhanika Polimerov, Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 204–206, 1967     

Study of mechanical relaxation processes in ladder organosilicon polymers

Dynamic viscoelastic properties of ladder polyorganosiloxanes have been studied by the method of induced resonance oscillations in the temperature range from –150 to 300°C and in the frequency range from 8 to 300 Hz. Two broad maxima of mechanical losses were observed for all the polymers studied independently of their chemical structure, a low-temperature maximum in the –150 to 0°C region and a high-temperature maximum in the 0 to 250°C region. It was found that the introduction of alkyl groups into polyphenylsilsesquioxanes does not noticeably affect the position and nature of the low-temperature relaxation peaks but in certain cases leads to an increase in the dynamic modulus in polyphenylalkylsilsesquioxanes, compared with the modulus of polyphenylsilsesquioxane in the same temperature region. In the high-temperature region, a distinct dependence is observed of the relaxation peak on the length and the content of alkyl groups in the polymer. It has been found that increase in the length and the content of alkyl groups is accompanied by a shift in the peak in the direction of low temperatures and a decrease in the value of the modulus. Hypotheses have been suggested on the nature of the shifts which lead to the relaxation peaks observed in the ladder polyorganosiloxanes.Institute of Heteroorganic Compounds, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Mekhanika Polimerov, No. 5, pp. 804–809, September–October, 1973.