Premium
Plasticity and fracture initiation in rubber‐toughened poly(methyl methacrylate)
Author(s) -
Gloaguen J. M.,
Steer P.,
Gaillard P.,
Wrotecki C.,
Lefebvre J. M.
Publication year - 1993
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.760331205
Subject(s) - materials science , composite material , natural rubber , nucleation , volume fraction , plasticity , shear (geology) , shear band , strain hardening exponent , strain rate , methyl methacrylate , polymer , polymerization , thermodynamics , physics
Abstract The deformation behavior of rubber toughened poly(methylmethacrylate), RT‐PMMA, has been investigated in terms of the ability of the material to nucleate plasticity. Work‐hardening rate parameter K measurements in the early stages of the nonelastic response in a constant strain‐rate test are used to probe the development of micro shear zones as a function of rubber volume fraction. The results reveal the existence of a sharp transition from difficult to easy shear band nucleation for a critical rubber volume fraction V c . This abrupt change in mechanical behavior also shows in the evolution of the critical stress intensity factor K I cmeasured at the onset of crack initiation. These findings are discussed in terms of the morphological parameters of the blends.