Strain hardening behavior of polymer blends with fibril morphology

We investigate the rheological behavior of the polymer blends with fibril morphology, with special focus on the effect of fibril morphology on the extensional properties under uniaxial extension. We add a small amount of the dispersed phase to the matrix, and control the blend morphology by changing the viscosity ratio. When the fibril morphology is maintained, the blend shows not only a significant increase of the extensional viscosity but the strain hardening behavior. The extensional viscosity increases depending on the aspect ratio of the fibers, while the strain hardening behavior originates from the restricted stretching of deformable fibers, which has been confirmed theoretically by introducing the concept of rigidity of the fiber. It suggests a way to induce the strain hardening behavior by introducing deformable fibrils into the matrix, that is, by the design of polymer blends with a small amount of dispersed phase such that the fibril structure is maintained.