Rheological Hybrid Effect and its Conditions in Filled Polymer Melts

Abstract

Summary: In contrast to usually increased viscosity of filled polymer melts with increasing filler content, some filled polymer melts showed decreased melt viscosity in the presence of thermotropic (main chain) liquid crystalline polymer (LCP) with increasing filler content. This phenomenon was termed as rheological hybrid effect and found correlated well with the fibrillation of LCP melt droplets. Investigation of this LCP fibrillation in matrix polymers, with fillers of various shapes at micro-and nano-meter scales, showed that LCP fibrillation was promoted by the filler addition, depending upon thermodynamic and hydrodynamic driving forces involved.