Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene, Viscosity

Wagner H.L., and J.G. Dillon. 1988. Viscosity and molecular weight distribution of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. / Aypl Poly Sci 36 567-582. 

The continuous extrusion of the solution of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) with a huge jump in viscosity when the solution is formed. 

Table 5.8 lists propylene polymerization data for some of the complexes shown in Figure 5.12. Varieties of other polymer products have been prepared using the D/A-bridged complexes. For example the (Flu)(Cp)ZrCl2 complexes (22a-b) produce ultra-high molecular weight (UHMW) polyethylene with intrinsic viscosities as high as 13.5 d/g. The D/A metallocenes are also effective catalysts for the copolymerization of a-olefins with ethylene to produce medium to ultta-low density polyethylene products. ... 

High density polyethylene (HDPE) is a linear polymer with a molecular weight of up to 200,000 g/mol. UHMWPE, in comparison, has a viscosity average molecular weight of 6 million g/mol. In fact, the molecular weight is so ultra-high that it cannot be measured directly by conventional means and must instead be inferred by its intrinsic viscosity (IV). 

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