Effect of crystalline morphology on fatigue crack propagation in polyethylene

An investigation of the influence of crystalline morphology on fatigue crack propagation (FCP) resistance in a slightly branched polyethylene is presented. Various thermal histories have been utilized to generate samples with different crystalline microstructures and the samples were characterized thoroughly using standard methods. Estimation of tie molecule densities was obtained from measurements of brittle fracture stress. Differences in FCP behaviour for the quenched and annealed samples were shown to be dictated by a competing effect between the degree of crystallinity and tie molecule density. Further, larger spherulite size and distribution appeared to have a deleterious effect on fatigue properties. In general, crystalline microstructure is shown to have a significant influence on fatigue crack propagation behaviour.