Augmentation of performance properties of maleated SEBS/TPU blends through reactive blending

Abstract

Meticulous investigation of reactive blending of maleic anhydride grafted styrene–ethylene–butylene–styrene (SEBS‐g‐MA) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is carried out to achieve systems with controllable morphology and superior mechanical properties. Two types of SEBS‐g‐MA (abbreviated as M1, M2) with different maleic anhydride content were used to separately blend with TPU. Formation of imide group from the interaction of isocyanate and maleic anhydride predicted from the plausible reaction scheme was confirmed through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. High tensile strength of the blends along with appreciable elongation at break was witnessed. Morphology analyses using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy exposed a vivid and homogenous droplet morphology in all the blends presumably due to in situ formation of a suitable copolymer at the interface. Differential scanning calorimetry was used to pursue the thermal characteristics of the blends. Melt‐rheological behavior of the blends was examined using a rubber process analyzer. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020, 137, 48727.

Assessing thermomechanical properties of a reactive maleic anhydride grafted styrene‐ethylene‐butylene‐styrene/thermoplastic polyurethane blend with temperature scanning stress relaxation method

“…This can be attributed to the interfacial adhesion between the blend components. [22] The findings from DMA are in line with the morphology observed in the blends. Storage modulus (E') measures the stiffness of the material.…”

“…The T g of the TPU phase is found to be overlapped with the T g of soft segments of SEBS-g-MA. 22] It can be noticed that the T g of the blends increases with TPU content in them. This data can be correlated to the change in the TSSR index and the relaxation spectrum observed above.…”

“…This observation can be corroborated with the in situ compatibilization achieved between SEBS-g-MA and TPU during reactive melt blending. [22,30] These significant changes in the relaxation behavior of the samples can be correlated with the extent of interfacial interaction between the blend constituents and change in the mobility of the chain segments.…”

“…In our previous studies, we developed and characterized this blend system emphasizing its mechanical and morphological properties as well as chemical changes. 22] This particular blend system was developed targeting the automotive industry, where TPEs are emerging as potential materials. SEBS-g-MA/TPU blends showed preferable mechanical properties along with a stabilized morphology.…”

“…The reactive nature of the SEBS-g-MA/TPU blends under consideration has been confirmed from previous studies. [22] During the melt blending the maleic anhydride groups of SEBS-g-MA and isocyanate groups of TPU react together resulting in in situ compatibilization between the constituents associated with the formation of physical crosslinks. [22,38,39] Here, a quantitative analysis of the crosslinking is done utilizing both theoretical method and TSSR.…”