Journal of Applied Polymer Science, Vol.74, No.7, 1731-1744, 1999
HIPS/gamma-irradiated UHMWPE/carbon black blends: Structuring and enhancement of mechanical properties
CB-containing HIPS/UHMWPE and HIPS/XL-UHMWPE are unique systems, in which structuring takes place, affecting the electrical (to be described in a future article), rheological, mechanical, and dynamical-mechanical properties. The XL-UHMWPE particles have undergone structural fixation due to the crosslinking, maintaining their porosity and internal intricate structure even after high-temperature melt processing, as opposed to the UHMWPE particles. Differences in the flow mechanisms of HIPS/UHMWPE and HIPS/XL-UHMWPE blends have been attributed to polymer viscous flow in the former case vs. particle slippage in the latter. The mechanical properties of HIPS/UHMWPE are enhanced when utilizing XL-UHMWPE as a dispersed phase, especially the strength, because of changes in the inherent properties of the UHMWPE following irradiation, and in particular, the nature of the HIPS/XL-UHMWPE interface. The results for the CB-containing 70HIPS/30XL-UHMWPE blend are especially surprising and of practical importance, due to the fact that no degradation of the mechanical properties has occurred as a result of the CB incorporation. The dynamical mechanical properties reflect the differences between the UHMWPE and XL-UHMWPE-containing blends as well. The presence of either type of UHMWPE, CB content, and blend composition affect the dissipation, but have only a minor influence on the transition temperatures of the components. Of special interest is the increased damping of XL-UHMWPE-containing compositions.
Keywords:MOLECULAR-WEIGHT POLYETHYLENE;RADIATION-INDUCED CHANGES;DENSITY POLYETHYLENE;FILLED POLYMERS;COMPOSITES;BEHAVIOR;CRYSTALLINITY;POLYSTYRENE;MORPHOLOGY;ALUMINA