Abstract
Miscibility in the amorphous region was discovered for the first time in a binary blend system composed of crystalline low-Tg poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT) and amorphous high-Tg poly(ether imide) (PEI). The blends of all compositions exhibit a distinctly single Tg, whose temperature as well as broadening extent is dependent on the composition. Additionally, homogeneous phase morphology in the blends was also substantiated using optical and scanning electron microscopy results. Interestingly, discontinuity (a cusp near volume fraction of 0.5) and general asymmetry were noted in the Tg-composition relationship for this miscible blend system. This phenomenon is interesting but quite puzzling. The peculiar Tg-composition behavior in the miscible PTT/PEI blends was analyzed using a classical free-volume approach, where uneven contributions to the polymer mixtures’ free volume were partially attributed to the vastly different Tg’s and free volumes of these two constituents. Furthermore, it was found that varying degrees of blend’s Tg broadening with respect to the composition might have also contributed to the noted discontinuity. The asymmetry was partially attributed to the PTT crystalline domain-induced variation in the intermolecular interactions.
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