A study of the dynamic properties,friction and structure of polyethylene with fillers

Summary An investigation was made of the rheological properties of linear polyethylene filled with acetylene black and aerosil, in the solid and the fluid states, and the structure of the filled polymer was studied. The dynamic and tribometric methods were used to obtain the visco-elastic and friction characteristics of the materials. Besides, x-ray diffraction analysis, electron and polarizing microscopy, differential thermal analysis and hardness determinations were employed.It is shown that the addition of acetylene black to polyethylene results in amorphization of the latter, this not being observed when aerosil is added. Aerosil forms a much stronger spatial network in polyethylene than acetylene black. The structural skeleton of aerosil causes an increase in the shear storage modulus of the polyethylene filled with it.Good qualitative agreement between the results of dynamic and tribometric measurements has been found when studying filled systems.