Evaluation of the Role of Ethylene Vinyl Acetate on the Thermo-Mechanical Properties of PET/HDPE Blends

Abstract

In this paper, blends of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with and without a compatibilizer were prepared using a Brabender Haake Rheocord at 270°C and 32rpm. Ethylene vinyl acetate was chosen as the compatibilizer and its proportion was set to 5, 7, and 10 wt%. The thermal properties and crystallization behavior were determined by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). Micromechanical properties were also investigated using a Vickers microindentation tester. The DSC analysis indicates that the melting temperature of r-PET and HDPE in all the blends, compatibilized and uncompatibilized, remains constant and almost the same as those of the pure component. On the other hand, it is shown that the degree of crystallinity of HDPE in the blends calculated by DSC depends on the composition of the polymeric mixture. However, the Hardness (H) decreases with increasing r-PET content until 50/50 composition of r-PET/HDPE is reached, whereas for larger r-PET content values, H increases. The same trend was obtained with the addition of the compatibilizer.

EVA and SEBS-MA copolymers incorporated silicone rubber/SEBS blends: improvement of mechanical and thermal properties

“…The presence of SEBS-MA improved the adhesion between phases and thus incremented the tensile strength of the compatibilized blends. Hellati et al 15 used ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) as a compatibilizer to augment the compatibility of PET/HDPE blends. Khanra et al 16 used SR-MA graft copolymer to boost the compatibility between FKM blend and SR.…”