Role of a Compatibilizer in the Structure and Micromechanical Properties of Recycled Poly(ethylene terephthalate)/Polyolefin Blends with Clay

摘要

The comparison of the degree of crystallinity\udand the micromechanical properties in the blends of recycled amorphous poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)with isotactic polypropylene (iPP) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with a compatibilizer in different proportions is reported. The physical study of the composites of the compatibilized blends and clay is also discussed. The analysis, performed by means of wide-angle X-ray scattering and differential scanning calorimetry techniques, permits us to describe, at microscale level, the role of the\udcompatibilizer on the structure and microhardness of the polymer blends that we studied. The results reveal that PET was incompatible with both iPP and HDPE. However,\udthe presence of the compatibilizer, a styrene–ethylene/butylene–styrene block copolymer grafted with maleic anhydride,\udallowed the compatibilization of these polymers. In the PET/iPP blends, the clay seemed to have a nucleating effect on the iPP and also induced a hardness increase in the compatibilized blends. On the other hand, in case of PET/HDPE, the crystallinity of these samples (pure blends,blends with compatibilizer, and blends with compatibilizer plus clay) only depended on their composition. Similarly to the PET/iPP blends, the addition of clay induced an increase in the hardness of the ompatibilized blends.