Stress–relaxation and stress–strain behavior of poly(ethylene‐co‐vinylacetate) at varying crosslink density

The stress–relaxation modulus of an unfilled ethylene vinyl acetate polymer at three different degrees of crosslinking was measured at 15 temperatures over a temperature span of about 160°C. At each temperature, the time response was measured for at least 3 decades of time. From these data it was possible to construct a master curve for each degree of crosslinking. The time–temperature shift factors, a T , were found to be related to temperature by the relation log a T = − A ( T –273), where the parameter A has an average value of 0.234 for the three materials.