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Processing of Silicon Carbide Fibers from Polycarbosilane with Polypropylene as the Additive
Author(s) -
Su Zhiming,
Tang Ming,
Wang Zhoucheng,
Zhang Litong,
Chen Lifu
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1551-2916.2009.03457.x
Subject(s) - polypropylene , materials science , silicon carbide , composite material , spinning , ultimate tensile strength , curing (chemistry) , fiber
The effects of polypropylene on the processing of low‐oxygen silicon carbide (SiC) fibers by the polycarbosilane (PCS) route have been studied. Polypropylene acts as a high‐temperature solvent for PCS, reducing the spinning temperature. A small amount of polypropylene (≤5 wt%) significantly improves the spinning ability and the tensile strength of the as‐spun precursor fibers because of its excellent fiber‐forming ability. During blending and spinning, no noticeable chemical interaction has been detected between PCS and polypropylene. In the early stage of electron beam irradiation of the polypropylene‐containing precursor fibers, free radicals are formed from both PCS and polypropylene. They combine with each other, forming a cross‐linked structure and promoting the curing. The introduction of polypropylene has no detrimental effects on the properties of the final SiC fibers.