EFFECT OF DRAWING ON MORPHOLOGY,STRUCTURE AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF BLENDS OF A LIQUID CRYSTALLINE POLYMER AND MODIFIED POLY(PHENYLENE OXIDE)

摘要

Polymer strands with various draw ratios of a thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer(LCP) and modified poly(phenylene oxide) were prepared by drawing the melts leaving aslit die in open air. The morphology, structure and mechanical properties of the resultingstrands were studied as a function of LCP content and draw ratio. It was found that thethermal and mechanical properties of the matrix phase did not change dramatically withthe amount of LCP and draw ratio, but the orientation of LCP phase could be increasedwith draw ratio. The mechanical properties of the strands could be improved by moderatelydrawing the melts. Wide angle X-ray diffraction suggested that the improvement in tensilestrength of the strands was due to the resultant fibrillation of LCP phase and enhancedmolecular orientation. Morphological observation indicated that excessive drawing of thestrands could lead to the break down of the microfibrils of LCP and thus resulted in thedecrease of mechanical strength.