Radiation-thermal crosslinking of polytetrafluoroethylene

The formation of a three-dimensional network in polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) exposed to ionizing radiation at temperatures above the crystallite melting temperature—a phenomenon that has been revealed and studied in the last decade—is considered. A change in the structure and properties of PTFE during its radiation-thermal modification under the specified conditions was analyzed. It was shown that such modification imparts to PTFE a set of additional valuable properties including an enhanced modulus and breaking strength, a low creep, a high wear resistance, enhansed radiation resistance and transparency, thus opening new frontiers for practical application of this polymer.