Blends of poly(ethylene terephthalate) and poly(butylene terephthalate)

Commercial grade poly(ethylene terephthalate), (PET, intrinsic viscosity = 0.80 dL/g) and poly(butylene terephthalate), (PBT, intrinsic viscosity = 1.00 dL/g) were melt blended over the entire composition range using a counterrotating twin‐screw extruder. The mechanical, thermal, electrical, and rheological properties of the blends were studied. All of the blends showed higher impact properties than that of PET or PBT. The 50:50 blend composition exhibited the highest impact value. Other mechanical properties also showed similar trends for blends of this composition. The addition of PBT increased the processability of PET. Differential scanning calorimetry data showed the presence of both phases. For all blends, only a single glass‐transition temperature was observed. The melting characteristics of one phase were influenced by the presence of the other. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 98: 75–82, 2005     

Influence of apple flavor absorption on physical and mechanical properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) films

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) films (280‐μm film thickness), which are used in food packaging, were immersed into 160‐ and 320‐ppm apple flavor solution for 14, 28, and 56 days at 5, 25, and 40°C, respectively. At the end of this period, the changes in the PET films were investigated by measuring the mechanical and physical properties. The mechanical properties were determined by examining changes in the Young's modulus. The changes in the physical properties were investigated by Fourier transform IR spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The formation of microcracks in the structure of PET films was observed by SEM. According to the results of those investigations, the apple flavor affects PET films, even at very low concentrations and temperatures. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 1802–1807, 2006     

Effects of the recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers on the rigid polyurethane foam

Recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), subjected to the treatment with the flame retardant first, was used to reinforce the rigid polyurethane foams (RPUFs). Different loadings of PET fibers (3–12 wt %) of different lengths (5, 10, 15, and 20 mm) were added into RPUF. The mechanical properties of composites were studied by compressive strength test and shear stress test. The flame-retardant properties were evaluated by cone calorimeter and limited oxygen index test. The results showed that the proper addition of PET fibers could improve the mechanical and flame-retardant properties of the material. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47758.     

Effect of recycling on the properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) films

Different proportions of recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) films were blended with virgin PET and evaluated for physicomechanical, chemical, thermal, optical and barrier properties. The safety evaluation of the films for food contact applications has also been carried out. The variations in properties, such as tensile behaviour, impact strength, tear resistance, burst strength, gloss, haze, barrier properties, crystallization temperature and melting temperature, are reported. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry     

Synthesis and characterisation of copolyesters from poly(ethylene terephthalate) and poly(hexamethylene terephthalate)

Copolyesters containing poly(ethylene terephthalate) and poly(hexamethylene terephthalate) (PHT) were prepared by a melt condensation reaction. The copolymers were characterised by infrared spectroscopy and intrinsic viscosity measurements. The density of the copolyesters decreased with increasing percentage of PHT segments in the backbone. Glass transition temperatures (T_g). melting points (T_m) and crystallisation temperatures (T_c) were determined by differential scanning calorimetry. An increase in the percentage of PHT resulted in decrease in T_g, T_m and T_c. The as-prepared copolyesters were crystalline in nature and no exotherm indicative of cold crystallisation was observed. The relative thermal stability of the polymers was evaluated by dynamic thermogravimetry in a nitrogen atmosphere. An increase in percentage of PHT resulted in a decrease in initial decomposition temperature. The rate of crystallisation of the copolymers was studied by small angle light scattering. An increase in percentage of PHT resulted in an increase in the rate of crystallisation.     

Mechanical and thermal properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers crosslinked with disulfonyl azides

A novel method for the crosslinking of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers is described using 1,6‐hexanedisulfonyl azide, 1,3‐benzenedisulfonyl azide, and 2,6‐naphthalenedisulfonyl azide. The azides are diffused into poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers (Dacron) from perchloroethylene solution, and the fibers are heat treated to bring about decomposition of the sulfonyl azide and give rise to crosslinking. A study is made of the mechanical and thermal properties of the resultant fibers, which are changed considerably in comparison to the untreated fiber. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 83: 1517–1527, 2002     

Effect of pretreatment conditions on the hydrolysis and water absorption behavior of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibrous assembly

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fibers are very hydrophobic and are therefore treated by alkaline hydrolysis to reduce their hydrophobicity, which not only reduces their weight but also enhances their softness, flexibility and drapability. In addition, if alcohol is used as a pretreatment agent, the form of the fibers can be changed and more benefits can be obtained from the subsequent alkaline hydrolysis treatment. Therefore various alcohols were used as pretreatment agents and their effect was investigated. Treatment with 1‐decanol leads to more weight loss of the PET fibers than treatment with the other alcohols investigated. Treatment with sodium hydroxide leads to weight loss in PET fabrics because terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol are separated by the hydrolysis of the ester group in the PET chains. Weight loss increases with increasing hydrolysis time and the reaction does not immediately reach equilibrium. The microvoids of the PET surface hold water molecules. The surface morphology of PET shows that the pretreatment reagent attacks almost the entire surface of a fiber, causing surface etching. As the surface etching progresses, it propagates inside the fiber, resulting in the formation of elongated cavities on the surface. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

The effect of physical ageing on the properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Physical ageing rates of poly(ethylene terephthalate) have been measured, and ageing is interpreted to be associated with the conventional glass formation process, which occurs at a more rapid rate at higher temperatures. Ageing is accompanied by a marked change in mechanical properties, increased tensile yield stress and drawing stress, more localized yielding of the polymer and a marked decrease in impact strength. The fracture results have been attributed to the increased yield stress and a change in contribution of plane stress and plane strain conditions in the samples. Fracture surfaces show evidence of mixed modes of fracture.     

Spinning and properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate)/organomontmorillonite nanocomposite fibers

By in situ polycondensation, a intercalated poly(ethylene terephthalate)/organomontmorillonite nanocomposite was prepared after montmorillonite (MMT) had been treated with a water‐soluble polymer. This nanocomposite was produced to fibers through melt spinning. The resulting nanocomposite fibers were characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The interlayer distance of MMT dispersed in the nanocomposite fibers was further enlarged because of strong shear stress during processing of melt spinning. This was confirmed by XRD test and TEM images. DSC test results showed that incorporation of MMT accelerated the crystallization of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), but the crystallinity of the drawn fibers just had a little increasing compared with that of neat PET drawn fibers. Also compared with pure PET drawn fibers, tensile strength at 5% elongation and thermal stability of the nanocomposite fibers were improved. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 95: 1443–1447, 2005     

Surface nature of UV deterioration in properties of solid poly(ethylene terephthalate)

We investigated the changes in the molecular weight and also in the mechanical properties with the distance to the exposed surface of the irradiated stacked poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film samples. A relation between the molecular weight and the mechanical properties of the irradiated PET was established. The relation demonstrates that the decrease in molecular weight is one of the main origins causing the deterioration in the mechanical properties. The photodegradation process developing in PET was quantitatively studied by investigating the degradation kinetics of stacked PET film samples. Our results show that the strongest degradation takes place at the exposed surface, and the degradation rate decreases with increasing the distance. This further implies that the capability to bear a tensile stress in the area near the exposed surface is much lower than that in bulk. Therefore, irradiated PET may be fractured in a lower stress. These results indicate the surface nature of ultraviolet deterioration in the physical properties of PET. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 67: 705–714, 1998     

Effects of mixing time on phase structure and mechanical properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate)/ polycarbonate blends

The effects of interchange reactions on the solid‐state structure and mechanical properties of a 70/30 poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)/bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) blend were studied. Increasing reaction levels were obtained by means of lower screw speeds in the extruder. The progressive production of copolymers with the reaction time increased the amount of each component in the other phase. The concomitant degradation of PET led to a maximum in ductility and tensile and impact strengths whereas the modulus of elasticity and the yield stress were held constant. The maximum in properties took place at a reaction time close to 2.6 min; at longer reaction times the negative effect of degradation began to overcome the positive effect of the interchange reactions. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 81: 121–127, 2001     

PEN/PET共混物结晶行为研究

用差示扫描量热法(DSC)研究了不同共混比例PEN/PET共混物的熔体结晶行为,并进行了等温结晶动力学测定。结果表明:随着两种组分向中间比例(50/50)靠近,共混物的熔融温度越低,结晶速率也越慢。     

Effect of poly(ethylene glycol) on the solid‐state polymerization of poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and end‐capped poly(ethylene glycol) (poly(ethylene glycol) dimethyl ether (PEGDME)) of number average molecular weight 1000 g mol^?1 was melt blended with poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) oligomer. NMR, DSC and WAXS techniques characterized the structure and morphology of the blends. Both these samples show reduction in T_g and similar crystallization behavior. Solid‐state polymerization (SSP) was performed on these blend samples using Sb₂O₃ as catalyst under reduced pressure at temperatures below the melting point of the samples. Inherent viscosity data indicate that for the blend sample with PEG there is enhancement of SSP rate, while for the sample with PEGDME the SSP rate is suppressed. NMR data showed that PEG is incorporated into the PET chain, while PEGDME does not react with PET. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry     

Acetaldehyde scavengers and their effects on thermal stability and physical properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate)

The acetaldehyde (AA) scavenging abilities of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) blends containing various concentrations of anthranilamide, meta-xylenediamine (MXDA), or alpha-cyclodextrin have been evaluated. It was found that higher AA scavenger concentrations generally resulted in greater reductions in detectable AA in terms of both the AA generation rates and residual AA contents. As little as 100 ppm, by weight, of anthranilamide and MXDA were respectively shown to reduce residual AA detected in PET preforms by 46% and 36%. Melt-blending 500 ppm of alpha-cyclodextrin, into PET, reduced preform residual AA concentration by 42%. The scavengers acted as PET nucleating agents causing more rapid crystallization while heating the blends from the glassy state and when cooling from the melt; however, they caused no changes in the glass transitions, melting characteristics, or oxygen permeation behaviors of the blends. Addition of optimal scavenger concentrations had minimal effects on preform intrinsic viscosity and color changes. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Structural,mechanical, and gas barrier properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) nanohybrid using nanotalc

Amorphous poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)/nanotalc nanohybrids have been prepared through solution casting route. The fine dispersion of nanotalc clay in the polymer matrix has been examined through transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The intercalation and interaction of nanoclay have further been confirmed using X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet, and Fourier transform infrared techniques. The thermal stability has been tested via thermogravimetric analysis and nanohybrids have been found thermally stable. The glass-transition temperature has been further confirmed through DTA and differential scanning calorimetry analysis which has been increased in the presence of nanotalc arising from greater interaction. The nanohybrids have been tested for their mechanical performances and have been found to have improved mechanical responses for nanotalc-filled nanohybrids. The modulus has been increased whereas toughness has been compromised meagerly. The modulus values have been theoretically predicted using various micromechanical models. The microhardness of the nanohybrids has been examined through Vicker hardness test. The theoretical prediction of the hardness values has been done using different micromechanical models. The structural development upon uniaxial stretching of the samples has been studied using small-angle X-ray scattering and wide-angle ray diffraction. The stretched samples have found to have short-range ordering as well as increased blob size and better coherency in the presence of nanotalc. The aspect ratio has been increased upon stretching. The inclusion of nanotalc has induced high barrier for gas permeation as compared to pure PET. The oxygen transmission rate has been found to decrease up to 64% for 8 wt % of filler concentration. The prediction of the permeability data has been done using different models considering different aspect ratios. The permeability values have been predicted very closely and nanohybrids have been found suitable for practical applications such as packaging. © 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 137, 48607.     

Biodegradability of poly(ethylene terephthalate) copolymers with poly(ethylene glycol)s and poly(tetramethylene glycol)

Poly(ethylene terephthalate) copolymers were prepared by melt polycondensation of dimethyl terephthalate and excess ethylene glycol with 10–40mol% (in feed) of poly(ethylene glycol) (E) and poly(tetramethylene glycol) (B), with molecular weight (MW) of E and B 200–7500 and 1000, respectively. The reduced specific viscosity of copolymers increased with increasing MW and content of polyglycol comonomer. The temperature of melting (T_m), cold crystallization and glass transition (T_g) decreased with the copolymerization. T_m depression of copolymers suggested that the E series copolymers are the block type at higher content of the comonomer. T_g was decreased below room temperature by the copolymerization, which affected the crystallinity and the density of copolymer films. Water absorption increased with increasing content of comonomer, and the increase was much higher for E1000 series films than B1000 series films. The biodegradability was estimated by weight loss of copolymer films in buffer solution with and without a lipase at 37°C. The weight loss was enhanced a little by the presence of a lipase, and increased abruptly at higher comonomer content, which was correlated to the water absorption and the concentration of ester linkages between PET and PEG segments. The weight loss of B series films was much lower than that of E series films. The abrupt increase of the weight loss by alkaline hydrolysis is almost consistent with that by biodegradation.     

A review on the potential biodegradability of poly(ethylene terephthalate)

This paper reviews the state of the art in the field of the hydrolytic degradation of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) under bio-environmental conditions. Most of the papers published so far on this subject have been focused on the hydrolysis of PET at high temperatures. Although some authors claim to enhance the biodegradation properties of this aromatic polyester by copolymerization with readily hydrolysable aliphatic polyesters, no clear and satisfying conclusions can yet be formulated. Poly(ethylene terephthalate-co-lactic acid), poly(ethylene terephthalate-co-ethylene glycol), and poly(ethylene terephthalate-co-ε-caprolactone) block and random copolymers are the modifications mainly investigated for biodegradable applications. The hydrodegradability and biodegradability of PET, PET copolymers and PET blends are detailed in this review. A total of 89 references including 16 patents are cited. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry     

Influence of branching on the properties of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers

A series of branched poly(ethylene terephthalate) samples was prepared by employing 0.07–0.42 mol % trimethylolpropane (TMP) for melt polycondensation. These polymers were characterized with respect to molar mass, intrinsic viscosity, and melt viscosity. Spinning into fibers took place at spinning speeds ranging from 2500 to 4500 m/min. The molecular orientation of the fibers as measured by birefringence and polarized fluorescence decreases with growing amounts of TMP, as does crystallinity. Thus with slightly branched polymers, higher spinning speeds than with a linear polymer can be used to achieve a certain property profile. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 728–734, 1999     

Morphology and crystallization of poly(ethylene terephthalate)

The melting behaviour and the morphology of poly(ethylene terephthalate) crystallized from the melt are reported. In general, dual or triple melting endotherms are seen, and single endotherms are seen when the samples are crystallized above 215°C for long times. The location of the uppermost endotherm was found to be constant below T_c = 230°C, and above that temperature the location depends on T_c. Therefore, we have shown that samples of PET which are crystallized above T_c = 230°C contain perfect crystals only; below T_c = 230°C, they contain perfect and imperfect crystals. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the perfect crystals are the dominant lamellae in the spherulitic structure, while the imperfect crystals are the subsidiary lamellae in the spherulitic structure, The amorphous regions are located between individual lamellae.     

Characterization of the physical and molecular structure of thermally elongating poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers

The mechanism of thermally induced elongation in poly(ethylene terephthalate) fiber spun at 3500 m min⁻¹ has been examined. This partially oriented fiber has a crystalline content of about 25% and a high degree of orientation. The effect of time and tension during heat treatment was examined, and it was found that yarns that were allowed to relax during an initial brief heat treatment at 130°C subsequently elongated by up to 5% during a long heat treatment at the same temperature. Yarns that were not allowed to relax during the brief heat treatment did not elongate on subsequent heating. The morphological and mechanical changes associated with these processes have been studied using differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), birefringence measurement, microscopy, and tensile testing. A large increase in crystallinity was observed during the brief heat treatment, but a much smaller increase took place during the long heat treatment. XRD indicated that substantial crystal reorganization occurred during both heat treatments, but c-axis growth was most significant in those materials that elongated during long heat treatment. It is proposed that it is this c-axis growth, in conjunction with conversion of disordered amorphous material into oriented crystalline material, that is responsible for the observed elongation. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 66: 989–995, 1997