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Improving foamability of polypropylene by grafting modification
Author(s) -
Liu Chunsheng,
Wei Dafu,
Zheng Anna,
Li Yong,
Xiao Huining
Publication year - 2006
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/app.23474
Subject(s) - polypropylene , materials science , grafting , rheology , plastics extrusion , rheometer , composite material , polymer science , reactive extrusion , polymer chemistry , polymer
Polypropylene (PP) foam has been considered as a potential substitute for other thermoplastics foams in industrial applications. However, the key concern is the weak melt strength of PP, which leads to a high content of open‐cell structure in PP foams; and, thus, unsatisfactory for a number of applications. In this work, PP was modified by grafting with unsaturated linear polyester (ULP) in a twin‐screw extruder in attempt to improve the melt strength of PP. The grafting reaction on PP and the modified PP were characterized using FT‐IR, DSC, and TGA. The improved foamability was verified by SEM observation. In addition, the rheological behavior of modified PP was investigated using a Hakke rheometer. The results indicated that the melt strength of grafted PP was significantly enhanced, facilitating the foam formation. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 4114–4123, 2006