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Oxygen and carbon dioxide permeability of EAA/PEO blends and microlayers
Author(s) -
Pethe V. V.,
Wang H. P.,
Hiltner A.,
Baer E.,
Freeman B. D.
Publication year - 2008
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.28193
Subject(s) - ethylene oxide , materials science , oxygen permeability , polymer , chemical engineering , permeability (electromagnetism) , crystallization , amorphous solid , nucleation , polymer chemistry , selectivity , polymer blend , ethylene , oxygen , membrane , composite material , organic chemistry , chemistry , copolymer , biochemistry , catalysis , engineering
The goal of this study was to broaden the spectrum of gas permeability and selectivity characteristics of poly(ethylene‐ co ‐acrylic acid) (EAA) by combining it with poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), which has a high selectivity for CO 2 . To obtain films that differed substantially in their solid state morphologies, EAA was combined with PEO as melt blends and as coextruded films with many alternating, continuous microlayers of EAA and PEO. The solid state structure and thermal behavior were characterized and the permeability to O 2 and CO 2 was measured at 23°C. When the PEO was dispersed as small domains, the particles were too numerous for most of them to contain a heterogeneity that was sufficiently active to nucleate crystallization at the normal T c . The rubbery, amorphous nature of the PEO domains enhanced the gas permeability of the melt blends. In contrast, the constituent polymers maintained the bulk properties in 5–20 μm‐thick microlayers. The series model accurately described the gas transport properties of microlayered films. Comparison of blends and microlayers revealed that the high CO 2 selectivity of PEO was most effectively captured when the PEO phase was continuous, as in the microlayers or in the cocontinuous 50/50 (wt/wt) melt blend. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008.