Draw ratio effect

In preliminary tests, melt mixed blends of PP and LCP were processed at six different temperatures (Tcyi 230, 240, 250, 260, 270, and 280°C) with a Brabender Plasti-Corder PLE 651 laboratory single-screw extruder. The measured melt temperatures were about 10°C higher than the cylinder temperatures (Tcyi). The objective was to study the influence of temperature on the size and shape of the dispersed LCP phase. Two different polypropylenes were used to ascertain the effect of the viscosity of the matrix on the final morphology. Different draw ratios were obtained by varying the speed of the take-up machine. 

The factor having the strongest effect is the elongation imparted in the process of production stretching. Second, the overall orientation is affected by the stretching rate. For the same draw ratio, the overall orientation grows with an increase in the stretching rate. The effect of the draw ratio on the value of Hermans function of orientation is illustrated by the values of/o, established by the authors and depicted in Table 7. 

Figures 20.13 and 20.14 describe the effect of dibutyltin dilaurate (DBTDL) on the tensile strength and tensile modulus for the 25/75 LCP/PEN blend fibers at draw ratios of 10 and 20 [13]. As expected, the addition of DBTDL slightly enhances the mechanical properties of the blends up to ca. 500 ppm of DBTDL. The optimum quantity of DBTDL seems to be about 500 ppm at a draw ratio of 20. However, the mechanical properties deteriorate when the concentration of catalyst exceeds this optimum level. From the previous relationships between the rheological properties and the mechanical properties, it can be discerned that the interfacial adhesion and the compatibility between the two phases, PEN and LCP, were enhanced. Hence, DBTDL can be used as a catalyst to achieve reactive compatibility in this blend system. This suggests the possibility of improving the interfacial adhesion between the immiscible polymer blends containing the LCP by reactive extrusion processing with a very short residence time.

Mechanical properties of the blends were investigated in fiber form. The as-spun fiber tensile properties are summarized as shown in Table 4. These fibers were further drawn at elevated temperatures at various draw ratios. These drawn fibers were stronger than the as-spun fibers. Table 5 illustrates the effects of temperature and draw-ratio on the fiber properties. Drawing at 400 °C at a ratio... 

The fibrillar structure of crystalline polymers is determined by molecular characteristics, the initial morphology and orientation conditions. Recently, a complex investigation of the effect of molecular parameters (MW, MWD and degree of branching) and orientation parameters (temperature and draw ratio) on the morphology of PE and its thermomechanical behaviour has been reported 181 185). 

Fig. 28. Piezoelectric stress constant obtained from inverse piezoelectric effect and electrostriction constant of drawn and polarized poly(vinylidene fluoride) film plotted against temperature. Draw ratio = 7. Polarized at 90° C under the field of 400 kV/ctn for 3 hours. Frequency of applied voltage = 37.5 Hz. (Oshiki and Fukada, 1971) Broken line represents dielectric constant at 21.5 Hz for roll-drawn poly (vinylidene fluoride) film (Peterlin and Eiweil, 1969)...

C for the bulk-crystallized sample, as shown in Fig. 12. A similar effect of drawing is also evident in the behavior of the narrow component, suggesting that the -relaxation process is shifted to a higher temperature with increasing draw ratio. 

A particularly interesting property of Durham polyacetylene is that it can be stretched to draw ratios of up to 20 during the transformation, to yield a polyacetylene sample with high levels of orientation. This effect was reported by Bott et al. 378) for thin films in the electron microscope and then by Leising et al. 379), who drew single fibres of polyacetylene to a highly oriented /rani-state with a density of 1.06 g cm-3. 

As can be seen, the amorphous phase is not present in all samples and the mass fraction of the interphase decreases as the draw ratio increases. By drawing as many as 150 times, the mass fraction of the interphase becomes as low as 0.06. A sufficient effect of drawing is obtained and the elastic modulus becomes as high as 190 GPa. 

Another effect of the variation of the extensional viscosity is the maximum extend-ibility. For polymers like high-density polyethylene, the rapid increase of the extensional viscosity during the spinning process limits the obtainable spin-draw ratio that is the ratio between the winding velocity and the velocity in the orifice. Examples can be found in an article of Han and Lamonte (1972). 

Typically amorphous polymers, such as polystyrene and polysulphone they generally show a weak strain-hardening effect and their natural draw ratios are about 1.5-2.5... 

The effect of an orientation process on an isolated elliptic flaw is depicted in Figure 7A. Let < i and a2 be the permanent stretch (or draw) ratios (ratio of drawn to undrawn length) to which the master sheet is subjected in two orthogonal directions. If an elliptic flaw is originally at right angles to the ai direction (i.e.y p = ir/2) and a2 = 1, then R will increase with until a particular value of is reached at which R = 1. For larger values of i, R will then decrease but the major axis of the ellipse is now at ft = 0. The critical draw ratio at which the orientation P jumps from tt/2 to 0 and for which the ellipse is circular (R = 1) is described later. 

Figure 7. A. Schematic of an elliptic flaw initially at right angles to the draw direction. For a uniaxial draw, the draw ratio D = at. At a critical draw ratio D = I/R the ellipse becomes circular. For higher draw ratios (D > I/R), the ellipse forms with a 90° change in its orientation. B. Schematic of the effect of increasing draw ratio on an ellipse initially at some angle other than 90° to the draw direction. C. A general biaxial draw (al9 a2) acting on an ellipse at initial orientation pto the, major drawm direction (a. > as).

Physically, the flaws with R > 80° are more effectively blunted than are flaws at a lower angle to the draw direction. Above the critical draw ratio, they are oriented close to the draw direction (low R ) and account... 

P behave the same and R /R = 1 /D in addition, all ellipses form with their major axes parallel to the draw direction, that is, ft = 0° regardless of the draw ratio D. The effect of ft is increasingly pronounced as the initial flaws become more slender (R- 0). 

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