Morphology of the transparent IPN‐like system PE: (BMA‐co‐S)

Abstract

ABSTRACT:In the study of interpenetrating polymer networks (IPN)-like systems consisting of polyethylene (PE) and butyl methacrylate (BMA)-styrene (S) copolymer PE/(BMA-co-S), the effect of the crosslinker on the morphology of IPN by using electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) was investigated. The IPN-like system PE/(BMA-co-S) represents a two-phase system with finely dispersed domains of crosslinked PE matrix. The interphase between dispersed domains and PE matrix is inhomogeneous and is considered the most interpenetrated part of this IPN-like system. The size of the domains decreases with the content of crosslinker used. The AFM micrographs allowed the observation of PE lamellae with lengths of about 25 nm.

Isobornyl Methacrylate as a Reactive Solvent of Polyethylene

“…Several vinyl monomers (including a divinyl monomer as crosslinker), have been reported as reactive solvents for polyethylene (PE): styrene (S),3–8 butyl methacrylate (BMA),3,9,10 solutions of S and BMA,11,12 dodecyl methacrylate (DMA),13 solutions of methyl methacrylate (MMA) and DMA (PE is not soluble in pure MMA),10,13 solutions of MMA and BMA,10,14,15 solutions of ethyl methacrylate (EMA) and DMA,10,15 solutions of EMA and BMA,10,14 and solutions of MMA and 2‐ethylhexyl methacrylate (EHMA) 14. In all of these systems PE was dissolved in the reactive solvent at an adequate high temperature (usually above its melting temperature), leading to a homogeneous solution.…”