The miscibility and physical and rheological properties
of binary
poly(vinylidene fluoride)/maleic anhydride (PVDF/MAH) blends have
been systematically investigated. MAH was found to be miscible with
PVDF by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning
calorimetry (DSC), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Fourier
transform infrared (FTIR) investigations provided positive evidence
for the specific interaction between the carbonyl groups of MAH and
the methylene groups of PVDF. Rheological measurements showed that
both the storage modulus and the melt viscosity of PVDF increase with
the addition of MAH, followed by a decrease with excess MAH. In addition,
the elongation of the PVDF/MAH blend with 10 wt % MAH is 589.7%, which
is almost 5 times that of neat PVDF. It is concluded that MAH small
molecules act as physical “crosslinking” points for
the neighboring PVDF molecule chains due to this specific interaction
between PVDF and MAH. Such a physical crosslinking function enhances
the storage modulus, viscosity, and mechanical properties of PVDF.