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Improving the stiffness of commingled thermoplastics
Author(s) -
Schadler Linda S.,
Gobran Riad,
Park Sung Chul,
Gleason Michael
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of vinyl and additive technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.295
H-Index - 35
eISSN - 1548-0585
pISSN - 1083-5601
DOI - 10.1002/vnl.730010316
Subject(s) - materials science , flexural modulus , flexural strength , composite material , crystallinity , polyester , compatibility (geochemistry) , modulus , unsaturated polyester , polymer
One of the limitations of commingled recycled plastics is their low flexural modulus, resulting from both the linear nature of thermoplastics and the incompatibility of the polymer phases. The goal of this study was to increase the flexural modulus of commingled recycled plastics by the addition of small amounts of polyester that acted both as a compatibilizer and a crosslinking agent. It was found that the increase in flexural modulus was caused by the unsaturated polyester acting as a filler, the improvement in compatibility of the phases, and the crosslinking of the commingled plastics. The increase was offset somewhat by a decrease in crystallinity of the phases.