Gas sorption in semicrystalline rubbery polymers revisited

This work reports the solubility of carbon dioxide, ethylene and propylene in low density polyethylenes with densities lying in the range 0.870–0.940 g/cm3. The sorption behavior is studied as a function of the crystallinity in terms of the Flory-Huggins theory of polymer solutions. For each gas, both the Henry’s solubility constant referred to the amorphous phase of the films and its temperature dependence do not change significantly with the crystallinity of the LDPE films. The enthalpic polymer– gas interaction changes with the nature of the gases, but not with the crystallinity of the filmsThe authors are very grateful to Dow (Tarragona, Spain) for supplying the polyethylene samples.Peer reviewe