Can Classic Avrami Theory Describe the Isothermal Crystallization Kinetics for Stereocomplex Poly(lactic acid)?

Classic Avrami model and its modifications have found diverse applications in describing the thermal and phase behaviors of inorganic metals and organic polymers.The direct introduction of classic Avrami equation to offer quantitative analyses of crystallization kinetic parameters for enantiomeric poly(lactic acid) (PLA) blends may,however,lead to contradictory conclusions.As revealed by this study,during the characterization of isothermal melt and cold crystallization for stereocomplex PLA containing equal-weight poly(L-lactic acid) and poly(D-lactic acid),the kinetic parameters yielded by Avrami equation are not in line with the classic crystallization hypotheses or the direct morphological observations.The underlying mechanisms,to some extent,lie in the generation of stereocomplex crystals (SCs) during the cooling/heating which affects the subsequent crystallization dynamics.The huge gap between the melting enthalpies of 100％ crystalline SCs (142 J/g) and homo-crystals (HCs,93 J/g) is most likely responsible for the confusing kinetic parameters acquired from the deduction of Avrami equation,which is based on the integration of enthalpies as a function of crystallization time.This prompts for great care that the classic Avrami equation is not applicable to accurately describe the crystallization kinetics of stereocomplex PLA,given the generation of SCs prior to crystallization and the coexistence of HCs and SCs during crystallization.     

Stereocomplexation and Mechanical Properties of Polylactide-b-poly(propylene glycol)-b-polylactide Blend Films: Effects of Polylactide Block Length and Blend Ratio

In the present work, poly(propylene glycol)(PPG) was block copolymerized to form polylactide-poly(propylene glycol)-polylactide(PL-PPG-PL) triblock copolymers for preparing flexible stereocomplex PL(sc PL) blend films. The sc PL blend films were prepared by solution blending of poly(L-lactide)-PPG-poly(L-lactide)(PLL-PPG-PLL) and poly(D-lactide)-PPG-poly(D-lactide)(PDL-PPG-PDL) triblock copolymers before film casting. The influences of PL end-block lengths(2×10~4 and 4×10~4 g/mol) and blend ratios(75/25, 50/50 and 25/75 W/W) on the stereocomplexation and mechanical properties of the blend films were evaluated. From DSC and WAXD results, the 50/50 blend films had complete stereocomplexation. Phase separation between the sc PL and PPG phases was not observed from their SEM images. The tensile stress and elongation at break increased with the sterecomplex crystallinities and PL end-block lengths. The PPG middle-blocks enhanced elongation at break of the sc PL films. The results showed that the PL-PPG-PL triblock structures did not affect stereocomplexation of the PLL/PDL block blending. In conclusion, the phase compatibility and flexibility of the sc PL films were improved by PPG block copolymerization.     

高分子立构复合结晶的研究进展

立构复合结晶是高分子结晶中的一种普遍现象,也是不同高分子之间共结晶的特殊形式.互为立体异构高分子在共混物和立体嵌段共聚物中可形成立构复合结晶.由于这种独特的链凝聚结构,立构复合结晶材料与相应的同质结晶材料的性能显著不同,立构复合结晶通常可提高高分子材料的熔点、耐热性、结晶能力、结晶度、机械力学性能、耐溶剂性能等.通过立构复合结晶,可使一些非晶或难结晶的高分子转变为可结晶或高结晶度的状态,从而实现材料性能的转变.因此,互为立体异构高分子之间的立构复合结晶为聚合物材料的性能优化和调控提供了有效的途径.文献已报道了多类可立构复合结晶的聚合物体系,包括脂肪族聚酯、脂肪族聚碳酸酯、聚甲基丙烯酸酯、聚酰胺和聚酮等.本文根据聚合物化学结构的不同,针对文献已报道的可立构复合结晶的高分子体系,综述了其立构复合结晶的形成条件、结构特征与物理性质.     

Influence of chain extender on thermal properties and melt flow index of stereocomplex PLA

The effects of chain extension and melt blending temperature on the stereocomplex formation of 50/50 (w/w) poly(L-lactide) (PLLA)/poly(D-lactide) (PDLA) blends or stereocomplex polylactides (scPLAs) were investigated. Joncryl^® ADR 4368, a styrene-acrylic multifunctional oligomeric agent, was used as a chain extender. Differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffractometry were used to confirm the stereocomplex formation of the PLLA/PDLA blends. Melt flow indices (MFI) of the blends were also determined. The stereocomplex crystallinities gradually decreased with increasing blending temperature and Joncryl^® ADR 4368 ratio. The significant decrease in the MFI of scPLAs is believed to be attributed to chain extension at the blending temperatures of 170 °C and 200 °C. The MFI values of scPLAs decreased as the Joncryl^® ADR 4368 ratio and blending temperature increased. The results indicated that the chain extension has an effect on the stereocomplexation and it improved the melt strength of the scPLAs.     

基底表面无规聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯立构复合结构的研究

采用原子力显微镜和反射吸收红外光谱研究了在基底上无规聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯立构复合结构的形成和结构特征,纯等规和间规聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯与等规/间规混合物(有立构复合结构生成)表面聚集形貌比较的结果表明,立构复合结构的生成使聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯在基底上形成树枝状的聚集形貌,因此无规聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯在基底上的树枝状聚集形貌表明了其内部生成了立构复合结构,而且这种结构对聚集形貌产生了重大影响,反射吸收红外光谱的研究表明,在基底表面薄膜中无规聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯主链结构比在本体厚膜中的更加伸展,更有利于立构复合结构的生成.     

基于聚乙二醇结构调控高分子量聚乳酸立构复合体系的结晶行为

设计合成了梳形聚(聚乙二醇甲醚丙烯酸酯)(PPEGA)及其与聚乙二醇(PEG)的嵌段共聚物(PEG-b-PPEGA).通过与高分子量左旋聚乳酸(PLLA)和右旋聚乳酸(PDLA)共混探究了PEG不同的结构对PLA立构复合体系(sc-PLA)结晶的影响.结果 表明线形PEGA和PEG能与sc-PLA完全相容,两者均能促进...     

高分子材料烧结成型研究进展

高分子材料烧结成型是借鉴粉末冶金技术而形成的一种特殊的成型加工方法,特别适合熔体粘度极大、高温易分解的高分子材料的成型加工。传统高分子材料的烧结成型温度在熔点以上,通过粉末的熔融和界面扩散将粉末烧结在一起。本文首先对聚四氟乙烯和超高分子量聚乙烯这两种常用于烧结成型的高分子材料的烧结成型工艺条件、成型机理及其多功能材料的制备等方面进行了系统的介绍;最后,重点分析了我们组最近针对立构复合型聚乳酸熔融稳定性差、熔融加工易降解的问题而提出的一种低温(低于立构复合晶体熔点)烧结成型新方法,即通过在粉末表面形成新立构复合晶体将粉末烧结在一起,并对其研究进展进行了综述。     

Characterizing polymorphism and crystal transformation of polylactide by terahertz time-domain spectroscopy

Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS), which has been proved to show promising application in complex polymer systems, was employed to investigate the polymorphism phenomenon and crystal transformation of polylactide (PLA) in this study. The THz-TDS shows sensitive response on the crystal structure. The α'-form, α-form and stereocomplex crystals exhibit absorption peaks of lattice vibration at 1.82, 2.01 and 2.09 THz, respectively. THz-TDS has no direct chirality identification on the difference between poly (d-lactide) (PDLA) and poly(l-lactide) (PLLA). However, the PLA stereocomplex shows an extra and distinctive absorption peak at 1.43 THz compared with homo-PLA, and the peak was proved to be stemmed from the collective vibration of L-lactic unit and D-lactic unit pairs connecting by hydrogen bonds. This is the first time that THz-TDS has been proved to be of great potential in identification of polymer stereocomplex crystal. Also, the α'→α crystal transformation of PLA were intuitively investigated at 120 °C using THz-TDS, while the transformation rate was quite slow.     

Accelerated hydrolytic degradation of Poly(l-lactide)/Poly(d-lactide) stereocomplex up to late stage

Poly(l-lactide) (PLLA)/poly(d-lactide) (PDLA) blend specimens containing only stereocomplex as crystalline species, together with those of pure PLLA and PDLA specimens, were prepared by solution crystallization using acetonitrile as the solvent. Their accelerated hydrolytic degradation was carried out in phosphate-buffered solution at elevated temperatures of 70-97 °C up to the late stage. During hydrolytic degradation, the stereocomplex crystalline residues were first traced by gel permeation chromatography. Similar to the hydrolytic degradation of pure PLLA and PDLA specimens, the hydrolytic degradation of stereocomplexed PLLA/PDLA blend specimens slowed down at the late stage when most of the amorphous chains were removed and crystalline resides were formed and degraded. The estimated activation energy for hydrolytic degradation of stereocomplex crystalline residues (97.3 kJ mol⁻¹) is significantly higher than 75.2 kJ mol⁻¹ reported for α-form of PLLA crystalline residues. This indicates that the stereocomplex crystalline residues showed the higher hydrolysis resistance compared to that of α-form of PLLA crystalline residues.