Dynamic mechanical analysis of fibers. II. Estimation of fiber orientation and characterization of heat set PET yarns

摘要

AbstractA drawn PET yarn was heat set (annealed) at temperatures between 110°C and 245°C in an unconstrained mode and the samples characterized by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). A method for estimating the fiber orientation factor (α) is proposed using DMA and shown to be more sensitive than the crystalline orientation (x‐ray diffraction) or total orientation (birefringence) measurements of the heat set yarns. The extension/shrinkage behavior of the heat set yarns has been discussed in the light of morphological changes, e.g., degree of orientation and the micro‐crystallite formation. Unlike in the unconstrained mode, heat setting under constraint does not lead to the formation of micro‐crystallites as revealed by differential scanning calorimetry. As a consequence, although the modulus and degree of orientation increase upon constrained annealing, the thermal stability, i.e., loss of orientation (reflected by shrinkage) could not be