Orientation glass transition

The orientational transition temperature goes down by about 12 K. The lattice parameter jump is less pronounced. The anomaly near the orientational glass transition (around 90 K) is smoothed out. 

Soft-drink bottles made from poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) are usuady made by stretch-blow mol ding in a two-step process. Eirst, a test-tube-shaped preform is molded, which is then reheated to just above its glass-transition temperature, stretched, and blown. Stretching the PET produces biaxial orientation, which improves transparency, strength, and toughness of the botde (54,56). A one-step process is used for many custom containers that are injection stretch-blow molded. 

It should be pointed out that the view of the glass transition temperature described above is not universally accepted. In essence the concept that at the glass transition temperature the polymers have a certain molecular orientation time is an iso-elastic approach while other theories are based on iso-viscous. 

In the case of polymer molecules where the dipoles are not directly attached to the main chain, segmental movement of the chain is not essential for dipole polarisation and dipole movement is possible at temperatures below the glass transition temperature. Such materials are less effective as electrical insulators at temperatures in the glassy range. With many of these polymers, e.g., poly(methyl methacrylate), there are two or more maxima in the power factor-temperature curve for a given frequency. The presence of two such maxima is due to the different orientation times of the dipoles with and without associated segmental motion of the main chain. 

The most desirable annealing temperatures for amorphous plastics, certain blends, and block copolymers is just above their glass transition temperature (Tg) where the relaxation of stress and orientation is the most rapid. However, the required temperatures may cause excessive distortion and warping. 

Orientation and mobility Orientation requires considerable mobility of large segments of the plastic molecules. It cannot occur below the glass transition temperature (Tg). The plastic temperature is taken just above Tg. 

Orientation, wet stretching For plastics whose glass transition temperature (Tg) is above their decomposition temperature, orientation can be accomplished by swelling them temporarily with plasticizing liquids to lower their Tg of the total mass, particularly in solution processing. As an example, cellulose viscous films can be drawn during coagulation. Final removal of the solvent makes the orientation permanent. 

Japanese researchers20 have attained a high degree of uncoiling of molecules and a high orientation of the latters in fibres by extension below the glass transition temperature... 

The most common type of glass transition is one that occurs for many liquids when they are cooled quickly below their freezing temperature. With rapid cooling, eventually a temperature region is reached where the translational and rotational motion associated with the liquid is lost, but the positional and orientational order associated with a crystal has not been achieved, so that the disorder remains frozen in. The loss of both translational and rotational motion leads to a large increase in viscosity and a large decrease in heat capacity. 

The glassy state does not represent a true equilibrium phase. Below the transition into a glass phase, the material is regarded as being in a metastable state. If one holds the substances at temperatures somewhat below the glass transition temperature, heat evolution can often be observed over time as the molecules slowly orient themselves into the lower energy, stable crystalline phase. 

Liquid crystalline solutions as such have not yet found any commercial uses, but highly orientated liquid crystal polymer films are used to store information. The liquid crystal melt is held between two conductive glass plates and the side chains are oriented by an electric field to produce a transparent film. The electric field is turned off and the information inscribed on to the film using a laser. The laser has the effect of heating selected areas of the film above the nematic-isotropic transition temperature. These areas thus become isotropic and scatter light when the film is viewed. Such images remain stable below the glass transition temperature of the polymer. 

In view of the development of the continuous chain model for the tensile deformation of polymer fibres, we consider the assumptions on which the Coleman model is based as too simple. For example, we have shown that the resolved shear stress governs the tensile deformation of the fibre, and that the initial orientation distribution of the chains is the most important structural characteristic determining the tensile extension below the glass transition temperature. These elements have to be incorporated in a new model. 

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