Polymer blend Blends, compatibility

Wetton RE, Corish PJ (1980) DMTA studies of polymer blends and compatibility. Polym Test 8 303-12. 

Though surfactants were mainly used to stabilize the immiscible small molecular mixtures, they were also reported in more recent to be used to make immiscible polymer blends more compatible (129-132). They could suppress the coalescence of dispersed particles to decrease their sizes, but could not increase the interfacial adhesion to increase the mechanical properties. 

Sanchez, I. C. (1982). Equation of state theories of polymer blends. Polymer Compatibility and Incompatibility Principles and Practice. K. Sole. Chur, Harwood. 

Kundu A.K., Ray S.S., Adhikari B., Maiti S., Polymer blends. 2. Compatibility and thermal-behavior of blends of novolac and polyamideimide firom rosin, Eur. Polym. J., 22(5), 1986,369-372. 

Various sophisticated instrumental methods have been developed to characterize polymer blends and compatibility, including thermal, microscopy, spectroscopy and other processing techniques. Recently, ultrasound has also been applied extensively to the study of polymer blend properties in both solutions and solids. The ultrasonic velocity and attenuation by the interaction of the propagating wave were used to investigate the various physical properties of the polymer blends, including density, compatibility, molecular orientation, and phase inversion. 

Unlike most crystalline polymers, PVDF exhibits thermodynamic compatibiUty with other polymers (133). Blends of PVDF and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) are compatible over a wide range of blend composition (134,135). SoHd-state nmr studies showed that isotactic PMMA is more miscible with PVDF than atactic and syndiotactic PMMA (136). MiscibiUty of PVDF and poly(alkyl acrylates) depends on a specific interaction between PVDF and oxygen within the acrylate and the effect of this interaction is diminished as the hydrocarbon content of the ester is increased (137). Strong dipolar interactions are important to achieve miscibility with poly(vinyhdene fluoride) (138). PVDF blends are the object of many papers and patents specific blends of PVDF and acryflc copolymers have seen large commercial use. 

DMPPO and polystyrene form compatible blends. The two components are miscible in all proportions (59). Reported dynamic—mechanical results that indicate the presence of two phases in some blends apparendy are caused by incomplete mixing (60). Transition behavior of thoroughly mixed blends indicates that the polymers are truly compatible on a segmental level (61). CompatibiUty may be attributed to a %— % interaction between the aromatic rings of the two polymers sufficient to produce a negative heat of mixing. However, the forces are very small, ie, = ca40 J/mol (9.6 cal/g), and any... 

Interfacial adhesion and, thereby, compatibility can be enhanced by the selective crosslinking reaction in polymer blends. Inoue and Suzuki [26] reported the properties of blends dynamically crosslinked PP-EPDM blends. The crosslinking agent was yV,N -/w-phenylene-bismaleimide - poly(2,2,4 - trimethyl - 1,2-dihydroquino -line) system. Increase in interfacial adhesion leads to... 

In a fundamental sense, the miscibility, adhesion, interfacial energies, and morphology developed are all thermodynamically interrelated in a complex way to the interaction forces between the polymers. Miscibility of a polymer blend containing two polymers depends on the mutual solubility of the polymeric components. The blend is termed compatible when the solubility parameter of the two components are close to each other and show a single-phase transition temperature. However, most polymer pairs tend to be immiscible due to differences in their viscoelastic properties, surface-tensions, and intermolecular interactions. According to the terminology, the polymer pairs are incompatible and show separate glass transitions. For many purposes, miscibility in polymer blends is neither required nor de-... 

Compatible Polymer Blends A term indicating commercially useful materials, mixture of polymers with strong repulsive forces that is homogeneous to the eye. 

This second group of tests is designed to measure the mechanical response of a substance to applied vibrational loads or strains. Both temperature and frequency can be varied, and thus contribute to the information that these tests can provide. There are a number of such tests, of which the major ones are probably the torsion pendulum and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). The underlying principles of these dynamic tests have been covered earlier. Such tests are used as relatively rapid methods of characterisation and evaluation of viscoelastic polymers, including the measurement of T, the study of the curing characteristics of thermosets, and the study of polymer blends and their compatibility. They can be used in essentially non-destructive modes and, unlike the majority of measurements made in non-dynamic tests, they yield data on continuous properties of polymeric materials, rather than discontinuous ones, as are any of the types of strength which are measured routinely. 

Zhou L.L. and Eisenberg A., lonomeric blends. II. Compatibility and dynamic mechanical properties of sulfonated cis-l,4-polyisoprenes and styrene/4-vinylpyridine copolymer blends, J. Polym. Sci., Polym. Phy., 21, 595, 1983. 

Aryloxyphosphazene copolymers can also confer fireproof properties to flammable materials when blended. Dieck [591] have used the copolymers III, and IV containing small amounts of reactive unsaturated groups to prepare blends with compatible organic polymers crosslinkable by the same mechanism which crosslinks the polyphosphazene, e.g. ethylene-propylene and butadiene-acrylonitrile copolymers, poly(vinyl chloride), unsaturated urethane rubber. These blends were used to prepare foams exhibiting excellent fire retardance and producing low smoke levels or no smoke when heated in an open flame. Oxygen index values of 27-56 were obtained. 

Polymer blends have been categorized as (1) compatible, exhibiting only a single Tg, (2) mechanically compatible, exhibiting the Tg values of each component but with superior mechanical properties, and (3) incompatible, exhibiting the unenhanced properties of phase-separated materials (8). Based on the mechanical properties, it has been suggested that PCL-cellulose acetate butyrate blends are compatible (8). Dynamic mechanical measurements of the Tg of PCL-polylactic acid blends indicate that the compatability may depend on the ratios employed (65). Both of these blends have been used to control the permeability of delivery systems (vide infra). 

Some of the polymers can be processed like ordinary polymers even in the doped state, which is one of their virtues. Like ordinary polymers, blending of dilferent polymers (e.g., a conducting polymer and an ordinary polymer) is possible. The mutual compatibility of the two polymers can be improved by choosing in the conductive polymer a tenside-type dopant ion that has a tail having affinity to the non-conductive polymer. 

One practical example of demixing that might be attributed to a difference in crystallizability is the incompatibility in blends of polymers with different stereochemical compositions. The stereochemical isomers contain both chemical and geometrical similarities, but differ in the tendency of close packing. In this case, both the mixing energy B and the additional mixing entropy due to structural asymmetry between two kinds of monomers are small. However, the stereochemical differences between two polymers will result in a difference in the value of Ep. Under this consideration, most experimental observations on the compatibility of polymer blends with different stereochemical compositions [89-99] are tractable. For more details, we refer the reader to Ref. [86]. 

The heat distortion temperature of impact-resistant polystyrene may also be improved by polymer blends. Those of impact-resistant polystyrene with poly-2,5-dimethylphenylene-1,4-oxide (PPO) are particularly interesting (90). Polystyrene and PPO are molecularly compatible and mixtures of them have glass transition temperatures which vary virtually linearly with composition. A further advantage of these compositions which should not be under-estimated is their better flame resistance. 

The increasing interest in polymer blends has acted as a stimulus not only to the aspects just outlined but also to a study of interactions between polymer A and polymer B in solution as a route to quantifying their thermodynamic compatibility. Hyde167 has reviewed the relevant theory whilst Kratochvfl and co-workers168,169 have been responsible for much of the latest experimental studies. 

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.

Note 2 Compatibility is often established by the observation of mechanical integrity under the intended conditions of use of a composite or an immiscible polymer blend. 

Process of modification of the interfacial properties in an immiscible polymer blend that results in formation of the interphases and stabilization of the morphology, leading to the creation of a compatible polymer blend. 

Polymeric material, exhibiting macroscopically uniform physical properties throughout its whole volume, that comprises a compatible polymer blend, a miscible polymer blend, or a multiphase copolymer. 

---