Premium
Investigation of modified SEBS‐based thermoplastic elastomers by temperature scanning stress relaxation measurements
Author(s) -
Barbe Aron,
Bökamp Klaus,
Kummerlöwe Claudia,
Sollmann Henner,
Vennemann Norbert,
Vinzelberg Stefan
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
polymer engineering and science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1548-2634
pISSN - 0032-3888
DOI - 10.1002/pen.20427
Subject(s) - materials science , thermoplastic elastomer , composite material , glass transition , polystyrene , thermoplastic , heat deflection temperature , polypropylene , polymer blend , polymer , elastomer , differential scanning calorimetry , polyamide , izod impact strength test , copolymer , ultimate tensile strength , thermodynamics , physics
Abstract Thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) based on poly(styrene‐ b ‐ethylene/butylene‐ b ‐styrene) (SEBS), modified with poly(2,6‐dimethyl‐1,4‐phenylene ether) (PPE), were investigated by a new testing method. The development and characterization of TPEs with improved temperature and oil resistance is a current area of research to extend the applications of TPEs, especially in the automotive industry. Thermal scanning stress relaxation (TSSR) was used to investigate the relaxation behavior of compounds containing SEBS, blended with extender oil, various amounts of PPE and in some cases with a thermoplastic polymer. Polyamide 12 (PA12) or polypropylene (PP) were used as the thermoplastic component. TSSR measurements were applied to detect relaxation changes in the glass transition region of the polystyrene blocks mixed with PPE. It was shown that the glass transition temperature increased with addition of PPE to the compound up to a limit of approximately 150°C, which corresponded to a weight fraction of PPE in the polystyrene (PS)‐block of 0.5. The increased glass transition temperature lead to SEBS‐based thermoplastic elastomer compounds with improved upper service temperatures. Phase images obtained by atomic force microscopy showed that the addition of PPE results in an increase of hard phase dimension. The addition of a thermoplastic polymer improved the mechanical properties and temperature resistance, but naturally decreased the elasticity of the compounds. Compounds containing PA12 exhibited an improved oil resistance. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 45:1498–1507, 2005. © 2005 Society of Plastics Engineers