Estimating Slow Crack Growth Performance of Polyethylene Resins from Primary Structures such as Molecular Weight and Short Chain Branching

Summary: Molecular weight and short chain branching (SCB) data experimentally obtained by SEC-FTIR are combined into a single, primary structural parameter (PSP2) and used to rapidly screen the slow crack growth resistance of a variety of polyethylene resins. Our results show that PSP2 values obtained for resins made using different catalysts (both dual and single catalyst systems) and hence, different polymer architectures, correlate well with results obtained from several short-term tensile tests. The development of PSP2, as well as the qualitative and quantitative predictive ability of this parameter are presented and discussed.