Investigation of phase morphology, thermal behavior, and impact properties of polyamide-1010/polystyrene blends compatibilized by lightly sulfonated polystyrene ionomers

摘要

The phase morphology, thermal behavior, and impact properties of polyamide-1010 (PA)/polystyrene (PS) blends compatibilized by sulfonated polystyrene (HSPS) and their zinc salts (ZnSPS) were investigated, using a dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA), a scanning electron microscope (SEM), a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and a pendulum impact tester. It was found that the addition of the ionomer had an improved effect on the phase morphology of the resulting blends, where the HSPS was a more effective compatibilizer than was the ZnSPS due to its low melt viscosity and less self-agglomeration in the PA matrix. DSC results showed that with increasing the ionomer content the amount of the less perfect crystals of PA increased in these blends and, hence, led to a small increase in the crystallinity of the PA phase. The crystallization rate of the PA in the resulting blends was accelerated slightly by the ZnSPS but was decreased by the HSPS, which was probably due to the nucleation effect of ZnSPS for PA but no nucleation of HSPS. The best improvement in the notched impact strength of the blends was achieved with the content of the ionomer up to 20 wt % based on the amount of PS. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [References: 18]