Effect of Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane on the Melting, Structure, and Mechanical Behavior of Polyoxymethylene

The effects of octakis[(3-glycidoxypropyl)dimethylsiloxy]octasilsesquioxane (GPOSS) on the crystallinity, crystal structure, morphology, and mechanical properties of polyoxymethylene (POM) and POM/GPOSS composites were investigated. The POM/GPOSS composites with varying concentrations of GPOSS nanoparticles (0.05–0.25 wt %) were prepared via melt blending. The structure of POM/GPOSS composites was characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), and polarized light microscopy (PLM). The mechanical properties were determined by standardized tensile tests. The morphology and dispersion of GPOSS nanoparticles in the POM matrix were investigated with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. It was observed that the dispersion of the GPOSS nanoparticles was uniform. Based on DSC studies, it was found that the melting temperature, lamellar thickness, and the degree of crystallinity of the POM/GPOSS composites increased. The POM/GPOSS composites showed an increased Young’s modulus and tensile strength. Finally, compared with the pure POM, the addition of GPOSS reduced the spherulites’ size and improved the crystallinity of the POM, which demonstrates that the nucleation effect of GPOSS is favorable for the mechanical properties of POM

Studies of the Trans-Quinacridone Nucleation of Poly-(ethylene-b-propylene)

International audienceThe poly-(ethylene-b-propylene) was nucleated for a study of the structure modifications as well as the improvement of the mechanical properties, particularly the impact resistance. The nucleation was accomplished by two various red pigments: a linear trans-quinacridone dye (as ß-phase nucleator) and a dimethyl quinacridone resulting in the formation of a pure a-phase structure. Such procedure allowed the comparison of both the crystal structure and the morphology of the copolymer. For the ß-nucleated copolymer a maximum of the k-value (fraction of ß-phase) was found for a concentration of the nucleating agent of 5 × 10−4 wt.-%. By means of the WAXS measurements (in the transmission and reflection mode) an important structure gradient was detected in the cross-section of the injection moulded samples. This structure gradient was also observed by optical microscopy, where an agreement between optical observation of the spherulites and the k-value distribution on the cross-section of the samples was observed. For both nucleating agents (linear transquinacridone and dimethyl quinacridone) a dependence of the mechanical properties of the copolymer (modulus of elasticity and brittleness by impact resistance) on the pigment concentration was observed. For the ß-phase nucleated copolymer the maximum of the k-value of the hexagonal crystal structure corresponds to the highest ductility by impact test

Rheological properties of polyolefin composites highly filled with calcium carbonate

In this paper the rheological properties of highly filled polyolefin composites (HFPCs) have been investigated. Calcium carbonate (CaCO3), with stearic acid modified surface, was used as filler. Ternary compounds have been obtained by the inclusion of a CaCO3/polypropylene master batch into the high density polyethylene matrix. The highly filled polyolefin composites with CaCO3 content in the range between 40 and 64 wt% have been prepared in the molten state using a single-screw extruder, the temperature of the extrusion die was set at 230°C. The melt rheological properties of the HFPCs have been extensively investigated both in oscillatory and steady shear flow