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Morphology and performance of potassium titanate whisker‐reinforced polypropylene composites
Author(s) -
Tjong S. C.,
Meng Y. Z.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-4628(19981017)70:3<431::aid-app2>3.0.co;2-o
Subject(s) - whisker , materials science , composite material , izod impact strength test , whiskers , polypropylene , ultimate tensile strength , thermogravimetric analysis , thermal stability , scanning electron microscope , dynamic mechanical analysis , polymer , chemistry , physics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics
Titanate whisker‐reinforced polypropylene composites were prepared in a twin‐screw extruder followed by injection molding. The whiskers were surface treated with tetrabutyl orthotitanate prior to blending. The static and dynamic mechanical properties, impact strength, and thermal properties of the composites were investigated. Static tensile measurements showed that the tensile strength and Young's modulus of the composites increased with increasing whisker content. However, the Izod impact tests indicated that the impact strength of longitudinal samples remained unchanged with the addition of whisker up to 10 wt %. Thereafter, it shows a continuous decrease with increasing whisker content. The thermogravimetric and dynamic mechanical tests demonstrated that the heat‐resistance and thermooxidative stability for the composites also increased with increasing whisker content. Scanning electron microscopic observations revealed that the whiskers within the composites were oriented uniformly. The experimental data were compared with the well established mechanical models to evaluate the reinforcing efficiency. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 70: 431–439, 1998