Electron beam initiated grafting of methyl methacrylate onto polyethylene: Structure and properties

Abstract

Polyethylene (PE, 100 parts by weight) was mixed with methyl methacrylate (MMA, up to 5 parts by weight) at 120°C and subsequently exposed to electron radiation of different doses (up to 20 Mrad) to prepare PE/MMA graft copolymers. Successful grafting was verified by IR spectroscopy. Gel formation indicated crosslinking. Grafting increased with increasing MMA concentration and increasing irradiation dose. Crystalline melting temperature and percent crystallinity were lower than those of untreated PE. Tensile strength, elongation at break and dielectric constant of grafted samples were measured and discussed.

Electron beam irradiation of ethylene‐propylene terpolymer: Evaluation of trimethylol propane trimethacrylate as a crosslink promoter

“…However, these responses of polymeric materials to high energy radiations can be manipulated with additives like crosslink promoters and chain scission sensitizers. Various multifunctional monomers like triallyl cyanurate (TAC),8 trimethylol propane triacrylate,9 and trimethylol propane trimethacrylate (TMPTMA)10–12 have been used as crosslink promoters in electron beam induced crosslinking of polymers. In this article we report on the effect of electron beam irradiation on a particular grade of EPDM selected for our future studies on radiation processing of rubber–plastic blends, over a range of radiation doses, and to evaluate the efficiency of the crosslink promoter TMPTMA by monitoring the development of gel, swelling behavior, and physical properties and correlating the same with radiation dose and TMPTMA levels.…”

Development of new thermoplastic elastomers from blends of polyethylene and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer by electron-beam technology

“…It may be pointed out that the tensile strength of pure PE and EVA passes through a maximal at an intermediate radiation dose while the elongation at break decreases with increase in the radiation dose. [21][22][23] To understand the modulus and strength of the electron-beam crosslinked PE/EVA blend, the same parameters were calculated theoretically using an approach similar to that of Takayanagi et al 28 and assuming a two-phase material combining series and parallel elements. Since the LDPE used in this study has a high MFI (low viscosity at mixing temperature), the parallelmodel upper bound was considered as follows: These are shown in Figure 3.…”

“…20 The effects of electron-beam radiation on the structures and properties of polyethylene (PE) and ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) in the presence of different types of polyfunctional monomers have also been reported. [21][22][23] The influence of electron-beam irradiation on the mechanical properties of polypropylene-EPDM rubber blends was studied by Harnischfeger et al 24 Martinez-Padro et al 25 carried out gamma radiation-induced crosslinking of PE and EVA blends. Possible chemical reactions and alternative irradiation methods were also discussed.…”