Hot compaction of woven poly(ethylene terephthalate) multifilaments

Here we describe the development of a process, and the resulting mechanical properties, for hot‐compacted sheets of woven poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) multifilaments. Investigation of the various processing parameters showed that a key aspect was the time spent at the compaction temperature, termed the dwell time. Molecular weight measurements, using intrinsic viscosity, showed that hydrolytic degradation occurred rapidly at the temperatures required for successful compaction, leading to embrittlement of the resulting materials with increasing dwell time. A dwell time of 2 min was found to be optimum because this gave the required percentage of melted material to bind the structure together, while giving only a small decrease in molecular weight. A combination of techniques, including mechanical tests, differential scanning calorimetry, and scanning electron microscopy, was used to examine the mechanical properties and morphology of the optimum compacted sheets. These tests reinforced the view from previous studies on hot‐compacted polypropylene, of hot‐compacted sheets as self‐reinforced composites, whose behavior is a combination of the properties of the two components, that is, the original oriented multifilaments and the melted and recrystallized matrix. Other key findings from the research included a confirmation of the importance of obtaining high ductility in the melted and recrystallized phases, promoted by using a high molecular weight or by suppressing crystallinity during processing, and the proportionately high‐impact performance of hot‐compacted sheets, compared with that of other materials. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 2223–2233, 2004     

Influence of water on the viscoelastic behavior of recycled nylon 6,6

Nylons are highly sensitive to moisture, as water molecules are able to form hydrogen‐bonded complexes with nitrogen and oxygen from the amide functional groups. In recycled nylon 6,6, a higher absorbed moisture content can be detected in comparison to virgin material. Moisture uptake is manifested in chemical and physical properties, and has important technological consequences, so the relationship between them must be assessed. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) has been used to measure the water content of different samples and physical changes have been analyzed by means of dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA). The relaxation zones of the dynamic‐mechanical relaxation spectra of the samples have been characterized according to the Fuoss‐Kirkwood equation and with help of the deconvolution method. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 85: 2211–2218, 2002     

尼龙6改性研究

采用经化学改性的芳纶纤维增强尼龙6,并通过红外光谱和电镜分析其界面层,结果表明芳纶纤维经异氰酸酯化及封端稳定处理后,其表面所接技的不稳定基团-NCO转化成稳定的-NHCO-,封端结果较为明显;改性后纤维表面附有接枝物,从而使表面粗糙程度大大增加。用挤出和注塑的方法加工了PA6／Kevlar纤维（KF）复合材料,研究了它的拉伸、弯曲和冲击性能破坏形态。力学性能测试表明了改性尼龙6复合材料的拉伸和弯曲强度得到了改善,但冲击性能略为下降。     

Limonene transport and mechanical properties of EVOH and nylon 6,6 films as influenced by RH

The transport properties of d‐limonene through ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymers (EVOH) and nylon 6,6 films as functions of relative humidity (RH) and temperature were studied. Permeation properties of these polymers were strongly influenced by temperature and RH. Compared to the EVOH films, the nylon 6,6 film had much greater limonene permeability. Mechanical property studies indicated that both the tensile modulus and yield strength of the EVOH films decreased with an increase in RH. The polymer changed from being stiff and brittle at low RH to being soft and ductile at high RH. In addition, ethylene content and orientation were found to affect the transport and mechanical properties of limonene through EVOH polymers. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 79: 1949–1957, 2001     

Mechanical and acoustic frequency responses in flat hot‐compacted polyethylene and polypropylene panels

A range of flat hot‐compacted single‐polymer composite panels made from oriented polypropylene and polyethylene with differing dynamic modulus and damping capacity were freely suspended and subjected to mechanical excitation, allowing their acoustic frequency response over the audio bandwidth to be measured. The audio response over selected bands was correlated with the dynamic modulus and damping capacity measured in bending in these materials and compared with the response of a traditional composite material, namely, carbon‐fiber‐reinforced epoxy resin. Low damping and high dynamic modulus were found to result in relatively high output levels from the hot‐compacted flat panels, which contrasted with the results previously measured on a traditional cone‐shaped speaker made from a hot‐compacted polypropylene material, which found high damping to be advantageous. The results of the current study on flat panels are explained in terms of mechanical impedance of the panels and their corresponding efficiency. It was concluded that the best flat‐panel audio response came from compacted polyethylene sheets, which combined high stiffness, low density, and a low level of damping. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2006     

Thermally conductive nylon 6,6 and polycarbonate based resins. II. Modeling

Increasing the thermal conductivity of typically insulating polymers opens new markets. A thermally conductive resin can be used for heat‐sink applications. This research focused on extruding followed by injection molding and thermal conductivity testing of carbon filled nylon 6,6 and polycarbonate‐based resins. The three carbon fillers investigated included an electrically conductive carbon black, synthetic graphite particles, and a milled pitch‐based carbon fiber. For each polymer, conductive resins were produced and tested that contained varying amounts of these single carbon fillers. In addition, combinations of fillers were investigated by conducting a full 2³ factorial design and a complete replicate in each polymer. These through‐plane thermal conductivity experimental results were then compared to results predicted by several different thermal conductivity models. An improved thermal conductivity model was developed that fit the experimental results well for resins that contained single fillers and combinations of different fillers. This improved model was based on the original Nielsen model. A single value for the shape parameter, A (which is needed in Nielsen's model), was used for all three different fillers. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 123–130, 2003     

Alteration of the mechanical and thermal properties of nylon 6/nylon 6,6 blends by nanoclay

Nylon 6 [N(6)], nylon 6,6 [N(6,6)], and their blends at different clay loadings were prepared. The mix was melted and injected into strip‐shaped samples. Mechanical and thermal analyses were performed to investigate the effect of blending and the incorporated clay on the mechanical and thermal properties. Enhancements in the Young's modulus and hardness were obtained for all of the nanocomposites, with a 55% increase in Young's modulus after the addition of 6 wt % nanoclay, although the improvement in tensile strength depended on the blend ratio, with greatest effects on the 50% N(6)/50% N(6,6) blend with increases of 44 and 59% for 2 and 4% clay loadings, respectively. Thermogravimetric analysis showed an enhancement in the thermal properties in the 50% N(6)/50% N(6,6) blend at 2% clay loading, and the blend exhibited ductile behavior at this loading. Increases in the crystallization peak temperatures of 10–15° in N(6,6) and the two blends 30% N(6)/70% N(6,6) and 50% N(6)/50% N(6,6) were observed after the addition of the clay. The nanoclay enhanced the γ‐/β‐form crystals in N(6) and N(6,6) neat polymers and also in the blends. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy FT‐IR revealed the formation of hydrogen bonding and the possible formation of ionic bonds between the polymers and the nanoclay, which resulted in enhancements in the mechanical properties of the blends. The distribution of the nanoclay in the blend was well dispersed, as shown by X‐ray diffraction analysis. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Thermally conductive nylon 6,6 and polycarbonate based resins. I. Synergistic effects of carbon fillers

Increasing the thermal conductivity of typically insulating polymers, such as nylon 6,6, opens new markets. A thermally conductive resin can be used for heat‐sink applications. This research focused on performing compounding runs followed by injection molding and thermal conductivity testing of carbon filled nylon 6,6 and polycarbonate based resins. The three carbon fillers investigated included an electrically conductive carbon black, synthetic graphite particles, and a milled pitch‐based carbon fiber. For each polymer, conductive resins were produced and tested that contained varying amounts of these single carbon fillers. In addition, combinations of fillers were investigated by conducting a full 2³ factorial design and a complete replicate in each polymer. The objective of this article was to determine the effects and interactions of each filler on the thermal conductivity properties of the conductive resins. From the through‐plane thermal conductivity results, it was determined that for both nylon 6,6 and polycarbonate based resins, synthetic graphite particles caused the largest increase in composite thermal conductivity, followed by carbon fibers. The combination of synthetic graphite particles and carbon fiber had the third most important effect on composite thermal conductivity. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 112–122, 2003     

Simultaneous enhancements of mechanical and thermal properties of monomer cast nylon via kaolin modified by poly (ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether)

Monomer cast nylon was incorporated with different contents of kaolin, which is grafted with poly (ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether) via in-situ polymerization. The influence of treated-kaolin and kaolin contents on composites properties was studied. Treated-kaolin has a better effect on the properties of nylon than kaolin. Thermogravimetric analysis and Differential scanning calorimetry analysis show that that the feeding of kaolin improved thermal stability and crystallinity of nylon. The results indicate that using treated-kaolin as reinforcement, the composites displayed remarkable mechanical properties, the tensile strength and notched impact strength are 83.6 MPa and 4.46 MPa, respectively. The water absorption capacity of composites was greatly reduced by 50% with the feeding of kaolin.     

Conducting polymer composites of zinc‐filled nylon 6

The present work is concerned with the effect of processing variables and filler concentration on the electrical conductivity, hardness, and density of composite materials prepared by compression molding of a mixture of zinc powder and nylon 6 powder. The electrical conductivity of the composites is <10^?12 S/cm, unless the metal content reaches the percolation threshold at a volume fraction of about 0.18, beyond which the conductivity increases markedly by as much as 10 orders of magnitude. The density of the composites was measured and compared with values calculated by assuming different void levels within the samples. Furthermore, it is shown that the hardness increases with the increase of metal concentration, but for values of filler volume fraction higher than about 0.30 the hardness of samples remains almost constant. Two parameters of molding process, temperature and time, were shown to have a notable effect on the conductivity of composites, whereas pressure has no influence on this property in the pressure range considered. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 82: 1449–1454, 2001     

Influence of water on the nanoindentation creep response of nylon 6

A nanoindentation system fitted with a fluid cell has been used to probe the influence of water on the nanoindentation creep response of commercial Nylon‐6 samples. Measurements on samples taken while immersed in deionized water were compared with measurements under usual ambient (～ 50% relative humidity) conditions. Water absorption reduces hardness by around 50% and elastic modulus by around 65%. The dimensionless creep parameter, A/d(0), where A is a constant and d(0) is the initial penetration at the start of the creep‐hold period, is a measure of the proportion of time‐dependent deformation compared with the total deformation. This parameter decreases significantly in water. We have suggested previously that A/d(0) correlates with tan δ. The observed reduction in A/d(0) when wet is consistent with a decrease in the tan δ peak due to a shift in the glass transition temperature when wet. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Effect of composite preparation techniques on electrical and mechanical properties and morphology of nylon 6 based conductive polymer composites

Nylon 6/carbon black conductive composites were prepared using two different methods, masterbatch dilution and melt mixing. Their effect on the size and distribution of carbon black agglomerates in the matrix was studied in terms of electrical and mechanical properties and morphology. The electrical resistivity of composites prepared by both methods decreased with increasing filler composition. The electrical resistivity of the diluted masterbatch composites and the melt mixed composites was reduced from the resistivity of pure nylon 6, 10¹⁵ “ohm, cm”, to 10⁷ “ohm, cm” at 1 and 6 wt % of carbon black, respectively. As the filler content increased, elongation at break and impact strength decreased, but tensile modulus increased. Masterbatch dilution method provided smaller carbon black clusters in composites compared to melt mixing method. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 102: 2520–2526, 2006     

Structure and properties of polyimide‐g‐nylon 6 and nylon 6‐b‐polyimide‐b‐nylon 6 copolymers

Polyimide‐g‐nylon 6 copolymers were prepared by the polymerization of phenyl 3,5‐diaminobenzoate with several diamines and dianhydrides with a one‐step method. The polyimides containing pendant ester moieties were then used as activators for the anionic polymerization of molten ε‐caprolactam. Nylon 6‐b‐polyimide‐b‐nylon 6 copolymers were prepared by the use of phenyl 4‐aminobenzoate as an end‐capping agent in the preparation of a series of imide oligomers. The oligomers were then used to activate the anionic polymerization of ε‐caprolactam. In both the graft and copolymer syntheses, the phenyl ester groups reacted quickly with caprolactam anions at 120°C to generate N‐acyllactam moieties, which activated the anionic polymerization. All the block copolymers had higher moduli and tensile strengths than those of nylon 6. However, their elongations at break were much lower. The graft copolymers based on 2,2′‐bis[4‐(3,4‐dicarboxyphenoxy)phenyl]propane dianhydride and 2,2′‐bis[4‐(4‐aminophenoxy)phenyl]propane displayed elongations comparable to that of nylon 6 and the highest moduli and tensile strengths of all the copolymers. The thermal stability, moisture resistance, and impact strength were dramatically increased by the incorporation of only 5 wt % polyimide into both the graft and block copolymers. The graft and block copolymers also exhibited improved melt processability. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 300–308, 2006     

Surface plasticisation of nylon 6,6 by water

Tribological studies have been carried out on Nylon 6,6 with particular emphasis placed on the examination of the effect of water on this polymer. An examination of the sliding frictional behaviour of Nylon 6,6 against a steel substrate shows that the friction decreases with increasing load, probably due to the formation of thermally softened interfaces in the contact. After exposure of this polymer to water, dramatic changes to the frictional behaviour of the Nylon are observed; the friction increases with increasing load. From the application of the adhesion model of friction it is postulated that the observed changes are caused by extensive plasticisation of the Nylon and, as a consequence, an increase in the contact area. This proposition is confirmed by the reported scratch hardness data. After treatment with water the scratch friction mechanism changes significantly and a notable reduction in the hardness of Nylon is observed.     

Mechanical behavior of nylon composites containing talc and kaolin

Particulate reinforced thermoplastic composites are designed to improve the properties and to lower the overall cost of engineering plastics. In this study, the influence of adding talc and kaolin fillers on the mechanical properties of nylon 6 was investigated. Fillers, either singly or mixed by various weight ratios between 10 and 30 wt %, were added to nylon 6. Test samples of the composite material were prepared by the injection‐molding process. Uniaxial tensile and Izod impact tests were carried out. Tensile strength, elongation at break, modulus of elasticity, and impact energy were obtained. The results showed that the tensile strength and modulus of elasticity of nylon 6 composite increased with the increase in filler ratio, whereas the impact strength and maximum elongation decreased with the increase in filler ratio. The optimal nylon composite was determined with the addition of a 10 to 15 wt % filler ratio. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 88: 1694–1697, 2003     

PA11/白炭黑纳米复合材料的制备及性能研究

以11-氨基十一酸和湿态白炭黑为原料,通过原位聚合的方法制备了尼龙11/白炭黑纳米复合材料,并用红外光谱仪和扫描电子显微镜等研究了纳米复合材料的形态结构、力学性能和阻隔性能。结果显示,当白炭黑含量增加时,拉伸强度和弯曲强度先显增大趋势;当白炭黑质量分数达到8%时,拉伸、弯曲强度达到最大值;之后,拉伸、弯曲强度开始减小。断裂伸长率则一直减小,无明显变化。尼龙11及其纳米复合材料的常温冲击强度也随着白炭黑含量的增加逐渐降低。此外,白炭黑的加入极大地提高了复合材料的阻隔性能。     

Synthesis of nylon 6,6 copolymers with aromatic polyamide structure

In this article, flexible nylon 6,6 was reinforced with rigid‐chain aromatic polyamides based on poly(4,4′‐diphenylsulfone terephthalamide) (PSA), poly(p‐diphenyl oxide terephthalamide) (POA), poly(p‐diphenylmethane terephthalamide) (PMA), and isophthaloyl chloride (IPC). Various high molecular weight block copolyamides were synthesized by solution polymerization using p‐aminophenylacetic acid (p‐APA) as a coupling agent. Their thermal properties show that the block copolyamides exhibit higher values of T_g and T_m and better thermal stability than those of nylon 6,6, especially the IPC‐modified nylon 6,6. The order of increased thermal properties of copolyamides is IPC > POA > PMA > PSA. From wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction patterns, it was found that nylon 6,6 has two diffraction peaks, that is, 2θ = 20.5° and 23°, while the multiblock copolymers showed only one at 2θ = 20°, indicating a different crystal structure. It was found that the mechanical properties of the IPC‐modified nylon 6,6 were improved more than those of the semirigid copolyamides. The order of tensile strength was IPC > PSA > PMA > POA, but for elongation, it was POA > PMA > PSA > IPC. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 80: 2167–2175, 2001     

Simulation of continuous solid‐phase polymerization of nylon 6,6. III. Simplified model

Solid‐phase polymerization (SPP) reactors are used to increase the degree of polymerization (DP) during nylon 6,6 production. In previous articles, a reactor model with partial differential equations (PDEs) in time and two spatial dimensions was developed to describe dynamic changes in polymer property profiles (DP, temperature, and moisture content) over the height of the reactor and within the polymer particles. In the current article, a simplified model is developed by deriving appropriate expressions for heat‐ and mass‐transfer coefficients and performing a lumped heat‐ and mass‐transfer analysis. Using this approach, the radial dimension is removed from the PDEs, so that the effort required to solve the model equations is substantially reduced. Predictions of the complex and simplified models are compared through simulation of two different start‐up processes. Good agreement between simplified and complex models is obtained, indicating that the simplified model can be used in place of the complex model if the polymer properties profiles within individual particles are not of particular concern to the model user. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 89: 3701–3712, 2003     

Mechanical properties and morphology of nylon‐6 hybrid composites

In this investigation, the influence of filler type and filler content on the mechanical properties of nylon‐6 is investigated. The mineral fillers were selected on the basis of their shape and size: flake‐like kaolin and talc, spherical glass beads or fibrous wollastonite. These fillers were added to nylon‐6 individually or in mixed combinations. They were added at different percentages varying between 10 and 30% w/w. Samples of the composites were prepared by the injection moulding process. Uniaxial tensile, Izod impact and flexural tests were carried out. Tensile strength, elongation at break, modulus of elasticity and impact energy were obtained and compared. In case of single fillers the results showed that the tensile strength, modulus of elasticity and their flexural values for nylon‐6 composite improve with the increase in filler content while mixed compounds showed no significant changes above 15% + 15% w/w filler. However, for single and mixed filler up to 10% w/w, the impact strength and maximum elongation at break showed significant decrease. In general, the maximum improvement in mechanical the addition of 10–15% w/w filler. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of Reinforcement Orientation on the Mechanical Properties of Microfibrillar PP/PET and PET Single‐Polymer Composites

In situ PET microfibrils are created by drawing melt‐blended PP and PET. The drawn blend is used to prepare polymer/polymer MFCs, and isolated PET microfibrils are used for the manufacturing of MF‐SPCs. Samples are prepared with different fibril orientations to determine the effect of orientation on the mechanical properties of the two types of composites. The resulting composites show improvements in stiffness of 77% for uniaxial MFCs, and 125% for uniaxial MF‐SPCs, with the highest recorded modulus of 8.57 GPa for a uniaxial MF‐SPC sample. SEM observations confirm that the fibrillar structure and excellent alignment is maintained. The changes in the reinforcement effect with orientation are very similar to those predicted by the rule of mixtures for the crossply.