Morphological, Rheological, and Mechanical Properties of Polyamide 6/Polypropylene Blends Compatibilized by Electron-Beam Irradiation in the Presence of a Reactive Agent

Boo Young Shin; Man Ho Ha; Do Hung Han

doi:10.3390/ma9050342

Morphological, Rheological, and Mechanical Properties of Polyamide 6/Polypropylene Blends Compatibilized by Electron-Beam Irradiation in the Presence of a Reactive Agent

Materials (Basel). 2016 May 6;9(5):342. doi: 10.3390/ma9050342.

Authors

Boo Young Shin¹, Man Ho Ha², Do Hung Han³

Affiliations

¹ School of Chemical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 712-749, Korea. byshin@ynu.ac.kr.
² R & D Center, Korea Petrochemical Limited, Ulsan 44785, Korea. hmh@kpic.co.kr.
³ School of Chemical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 712-749, Korea. dhhan@ynu.ac.kr.

Abstract

An immiscible polyamide 6 (PA6)/polypropylene (PP) blend was compatibilized by electron-beam irradiation in the presence of reactive agent. Glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) was chosen as a reactive agent for interfacial cross-copolymerization between dispersed PP and continuous PA6 phases initiated by electron-beam irradiation. The PA6/PP (80/20) mixture containing GMA was prepared using a twin-screw extruder, and then exposed to an electron-beam at various doses at room temperature to produce compatibilized PA6/PP blends. The morphological, rheological, and mechanical properties of blends produced were investigated. Morphology analysis revealed that the diameter of PP particles dispersed in PA6 matrix was decreased with increased irradiation dose and interfacial adhesion increased due to high surface area of treated PP particles. Complex viscosities (η*) and storage moduli (G') of blends increased with increasing irradiation dose and were higher than those of PA6 and PP. The complex viscosity of the blend irradiated at 200 kGy was 64 and 8 times higher than PA6 and PP, respectively. The elongation at break of blend irradiated less than 100 kGy was about twice that of PA6. Electron beam treatment improved the compatibility at the interface between PA6 and PP matrix in the presence of GMA.

Keywords: PA6/PP blend; compatibilization; electron-beam irradiation; glycidyl methacrylate (GMA); mechanical properties; morphology; rheological properties.