Rheological,mechanical and morphological properties of thermoplastic vulcanizates based on NR‐g‐PMMA/PMMA blends

Graft copolymer of natural rubber and poly(methyl methacrylate) (NR‐g‐PMMA) was prepared using semi‐batch emulsion polymerization technique via bipolar redox initiation system. It was found that the grafted PMMA increased with the increase of methyl methacrylate (MMA) concentration used in the graft copolymerization. The NR‐g‐PMMA was later used to prepare thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs) by blending with PMMA through dynamic vulcanization technique. Conventional vulcanization (CV) and efficient sulphur vulcanization (EV) systems were studied. It was found that the CV system provided polymer melt with lower shear stress and viscosity at a given shear rate. This causes ease of processability of the TPVs via extrusion and injection molding processes. Furthermore, the TPVs with the CV system showed higher ultimate tensile strength and elongation. The results correspond to the morphological properties of the TPVs. That is, finer dispersion of the small vulcanized rubber particles were observed in the PMMA matrix. Various blend ratios of the NR‐g‐PMMA/PMMA blends using various types of NR‐g‐PMMA (i.e. prepared using various percentage molar ratios of NR and MMA) were later studied via dynamic vulcanization by a conventional sulphur vulcanization system. It was found that increasing the level of PMMA caused increasing trend of the tensile strength and hardness properties but decreasing level of elongation properties. Increasing level of the grafted PMMA in NR molecules showed the same trend of mechanical properties as in the case of increasing concentration of PMMA used as a blend component. From morphological studies, two phase morphologies were observed with a continuous PMMA phase and dispersed elastomeric phase. It was also found that more finely dispersed elastomeric phase was obtained with increasing the grafted PMMA in the NR molecules. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.