ABSTRACT:Isotherms of sound absorption and velocity vs. frequency were measured for poly(tetramethylene oxide)-2000 ended by CH 3 and OH groups. The measurements were performed at 5-2500 MHz and at different temperatures at 313-353 K. The results are presented and analysed using different formats to examine the frequency dependence of the attenuation α(is sound attenuation at frequency f , α exc is excess sound attenuation at frequency f , and λ is the sound wavelength) as well as frequency dependence of real (M ) and imaginary (M ) parts of the mechanic modulus. Two dispersion regions are present on all sound absorption isotherms. Arrhenius curves of the relaxation time are fitted and analysed using Vogel-Tamann-Fulcher and Kohlrausch-WilliamsWatts functions. Relaxation time in the first dispersion region, as well as relaxation strength, are less affected by the terminal groups of PTMO than in the second dispersion region. Alternation of the different end-capping groups has greater influence on the relaxation strength values of the second dispersion region characteristic of the local segmental motions of the polymers.KEY WORDS Poly(tetramethylene oxide) / Ultrasonic Spectra / Relaxation Time /The simplest aliphatic polyethers such as poly(methylene oxide) (PMO), poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), poly(propylene oxide) (PPO), and poly(tetramethylene oxide) (PTMO) are well known polymers and widely used for industry and fundamental scientific interest. However, PPO, because of its noncrystallizability and availability in a wide molecular weight range, is acceptable as a model object for close examination of relaxation properties of flexible chain polymers. Its relaxation characteristics, basically those of the corresponding low molecular weight OH-ended analogue, so-called poly(propylene glycol) (PPG), have been intensively studied using dielectric, 1-6 optical, 7-10 nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), 11-13 quasi-elastic neutron scattering, 14, 15 and ultrasonic, 16-21 techniques, as well as various methods for probing viscoelastic properties. [22][23][24] In contrast to PPO, PEO and PTMO are possible to crystallize and they can be closely investigated only in a temperature range above the melting point. Consequently, dynamics of such polyethers in their liquid/amorphous state is studied to a far lesser degree than that of PPG. There are a vast number of papers devoted to investigation of the relaxation features of OH-group end-capped low molecular weight PEO, poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). The corresponding results are obtained using dielectric, [25][26][27]28 Brillouin scattering, 29 and ultrasonic, 30-32 techniques.PPGs and PEGs are characterised for the most part by a presence of two room temperature dispersion regions, corresponding to the relaxation times of 10 −8 and 10 −10 s. Those of PEG and PPG are rather close to each other at the same temperatures.It follows from the one paper 33 on relaxation behaviour of PTMO in a liquid state that room temperature quasielastic neutron spectra correspond to a relaxation time ...