Features of the melt flow of polyethylene and boron oxide oligomer blends

The features of melt flow of LDPE and boron oxide oligomer blends during extrusion mixing are investigated. It is established that the extruder-wall pressure and the torque of the screw decrease monotonically with an increase in the boron oxide oligomer content up to 25 vol %. Exceeding this concentration threshold leads to a several-fold stepwise fall in of the mentioned characteristics. This result is explained within the concepts about spontaneous restructuring of the blend accompanied by an increase of the specific surface of phases and by slipping at the interface of the blend components that is caused by the planar structure of the boron oxide oligomer molecules.