Influence of molecular architecture and melt rheological characteristic on the optical properties of LDPE blown films

A systematic investigation on the origin of the haze of LDPE blown films was conducted, aiming to correlate the film haze with the molecular architecture and melt rheological properties. First of all, the haze measurement indicated that the surface haze, rather than the bulk haze, is the dominating factor for the total haze of the investigated films. No spherulitic crystals or other superstructures were observed for the LDPE blown films, implying that the crystallites formed in the film-blowing process are too small to be responsible for the optical haze. Rheological study revealed that the surface roughness was originated from the irregular flow of LDPE melt during the extrusion process. NMR, GPC and parallel-plate rheology were applied to study the molecular architecture of the LDPE resins. It was found that the LDPE sample with higher haze value exhibits distinctly larger portion of higher molecular weight component, broader molar mass distribution, significantly higher side chain branch density.     

LDPE无卤化阻燃处理技术进展

主要综述了近年来国内外ＬＤＰＥ无卤化阻燃处理技术,特别对磷系类 机系类阻燃处理技术作了较详细的介绍。     

开口爽滑剂在低密度聚乙烯薄膜中的应用

介绍了目前我国低密度聚乙烯薄膜发展现状,开口剂和爽滑剂在低密度聚乙烯薄膜开口爽滑性方面的作用,分析了薄膜提高开口爽滑性的同时,如何兼顾较好光学性能,对国内低密度聚乙烯生产企业今后牌号升级及细化提出了建议。     

Effect of processing parameters on the morphology development during extrusion of polyethylene tape: An in-line small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) study

The in-line development of crystalline morphology and orientation during melt extrusion of low density polyethylene (LDPE) tape at nil and low haul-off speeds has been investigated using Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering (SAXS). The processing parameters, namely haul-off speed and distance down the tape-line have been varied and the resulting crystalline morphology is described from detailed analysis of the SAXS data. Increasing haul-off speed increased orientation in the polymer tape and the resulting morphology could be described in terms of regular lamellar stacking perpendicular to the elongation direction. In contrast, under nil haul-off conditions the tape still showed some orientation down the tape-line, but a shish-kebab structure prevails. The final lamellae thickness ( ∼50 Å) and bulk crystallinity (∼20%), were low at, for all processing conditions investigated, which is attributed to the significant short-chain branching in the polymer acting as point defects limiting lamellae crystal growth.     

Investigating the effect of power/time in the wettability of Ar and O2 gas plasma-treated low-density polyethylene

Low-pressure glow discharges of Ar or O₂ gas plasmas were used to increase the wettability of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) films in order to improve their adhesion properties hence making them useful in technical applications. Surface free energies of such films were estimated by the aid of contact angle measurements at different exposure power/time combinations for a series of test liquids. Additionally, plasma-treated samples were subjected to several aging processes to determine the durability of different plasma treatments. Characterization of the surface changes due to plasma treatments were carried out by means of attenuated total reflectance, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR) to determine the presence of polar species such as hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxyl, etc. groups. Furthermore, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to evaluate changes in surface morphology and roughness. Considering the semi-crystalline nature of the LDPE film, XRD studies were also carried out to determine changes in the percentage of crystalinity. The results showed that all low-pressure Ar or O₂ gas plasmas improve the wettability properties of LDPE films. Contact angles decreased significantly depending on the discharge powers and exposure times. Surface morphology was also found to vary with plasma discharge powers, exposure times, and the type of gas being used. Ar gas plasmas comparatively produced superior results.     

Effect of compatibilizer on the crystallization,rheological, and tensile properties of LDPE/EVOH blends

The effect of the compatibilizer on the crystallization, rheological, and tensile properties of low-density polyethylene (LDPE)/ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) (70/30) blends was investigated. Maleic anhydride-grafted linear low-density polyethylene (LLD-g-MAH) was used as the compatibilizer in various concentrations (from 1 to 12 phr). The interesting effect of compatibilization on the crystallization kinetics of the blends was noted, and the correlation between the morphology and the rheological and tensile properties was also discussed. Morphological analysis showed that the blends exhibited a regular and finer dispersion of the EVOH phase when LLD-g-MAH was added. Nonisothermal crystallization exotherms of the compatibilized LDPE/EVOH blends showed the retarded crystallization of the dispersed EVOH phase, which probably resulted from the constraint effect of the grafted EVOH (EVOH-g-LLD) as well as the size reduction of the EVOH domains. The blends exhibited increased melt viscosity and storage modulus and also enhanced tensile properties with the addition of LLD-g-MAH, which seemed to be attributable to both dispersed particle-size reduction and improved interfacial adhesion. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 68: 1245–1256, 1998     

Dialysis membranes from polyethylene films grafted with acrylic acid

Low‐density polyethylene‐g‐poly(acrylic acid) membranes were prepared by the direct radiation grafting of aqueous acrylic acid solutions (containing Mohr's salt) onto low‐density polyethylene films and were irradiated at two different irradiation doses (2 and 3 Mrad) at a dose rate of 0.02 Mrad/h. Two series of polyethylene‐g‐poly(acrylic acid) membranes with 100 and 150% grafting were obtained. The free carboxylic acid groups in the grafted films were converted into the corresponding acrylates by reactions with different metal salts. The swelling (water uptake) and dialysis permeability of glucose and urea through the grafted membranes in different metal‐ion forms were investigated. The prepared membranes showed good permeability to both solutes, which increased as the hydrophilicity of the membrane increased. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 10–14, 2004     

Electrical conductance of irradiated NBR/LDPE conductive blend during swelling in benzene

The effect of γ-irradiation on both the electrical conductance, Y, and diffusion coefficient, D, of acrylonitrile butadiene rubber mixed with different concentrations (1, 3, and 5 phr) of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) that was swollen in benzene, have been studied. The diffusion coefficient decreases with increasing the γ-irradiation dose for loaded samples with 1 and 3 phr of LDPE content, while samples with 5 phr of LDPE show a significant increase of diffusion coefficient with the increase of the radiation dose. The electrical conductance was found to be highly affected by the γ-irradiation dose. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 66: 1639–1645, 1997