Unique Slow Crack Growth Behavior of Isotactic Polypropylene: The Role of Shear Layer-Spherulites Layer Alternated Structure

With the development of polymer science, more attention is being paid to the longevity of polymer products. Slow crack growth (SCG), one of the most important factors that reveal the service life of the products, has been investigated widely in the past decades. Here, we manufactured an isotactic po...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mingjin Liu, Jiaxu Luo, Jin Chen, Xueqin Gao, Qiang Fu, Jie Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-11-01
Series:Polymers
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/12/11/2746
Description
Summary:With the development of polymer science, more attention is being paid to the longevity of polymer products. Slow crack growth (SCG), one of the most important factors that reveal the service life of the products, has been investigated widely in the past decades. Here, we manufactured an isotactic polypropylene (iPP) sample with a novel shear layer–spherulites layer alternated structure using multiflow vibration injection molding (MFVIM). However, the effect of the alternated structure on the SCG behavior has never been reported before. Surprisingly, the results showed that the resistivity of polymer to SCG can be enhanced remarkably due to the special alternated structure. Moreover, this sample shows unique slow crack propagation behavior in contrast to the sample with the same thickness of shear layer, presenting multiple microcracks in the spherulites layer, which can explain the reason of the resistivity improvement of polymer to SCG.
ISSN:2073-4360