Effects of PP-MMA alloy and impact modification on weathering performance of polypropylene

摘要

The weathering performance of polypropylene and a novel polypropylene/acrylic alloy with and without impact modifier was investigated. Accelerated weathering testing was completed using Xenon Arc Weather-ometer. Surface cosmetics (gloss and color change), microscopy, and FTIR were used to characterize the surface and bulk properties after exposure to accelerated weathering. Dramatic improvements in weathering performance were observed through the addition of propylene/acrylic alloys and a proprietary impact modifier to the base polypropylene homopolymer. The individual significance of the propylene/acrylic and the impact modifier on weathering performance were similar. The benefit observed with weathering when combining the propylene/acrylic alloy and proprietary impact modifier was additive with respect to weathering performance.