Insulation performance and microstructure in modified polyethylene by MPE

Electrical measurements have shown to be able to provide useful information on physical, chemical, and microstructural properties of dielectric material. In this article, the depolarization characteristics of low‐density polyethylene blended with a small amount of metallocene catalyzed polyethylene were measured by pulsed electro‐acoustic method under various stresses. According to space charge limited current theory, the derivation of quantities such as mean volume density of space charge, apparent trap‐controlled mobility, trap depth distribution, and threshold stress were discussed. The test results showed that low‐density polyethylene blended with 1 wt % metallocene catalyzed polyethylene could effectively decrease deep trap density, increase shallow trap density, and then improve the mobility of charges. We also measured the breakdown voltage and tensile strength of the blends. It was found that low‐density polyethylene blended with a small amount of metallocene catalyzed polyethylene could effectively improve its breakdown voltage and tensile strength but reduce the material tenacity. Finally, mechanical relax and crystalline morphology of blends were studied by dynamic mechanical measurement, wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction, and small‐angle X‐ray scattering experiments. The results showed that the improvement of electrical properties and mechanical strength in the blends were relevant to the crystalline morphology. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008