Mechanical properties of blends of poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(vinylidene fluoride)

Abstract

The mechanical properties of blends of the crystallizable polymer poly(vinylidene fluoride) and the amorphous material poly(methyl methacrylate) have been investigated as a function of composition both for glassy amorphous materials and for partially crystalline materials. The data obtained were interpreted in terms of the molecular and super-molecular structure of the blends and in terms of their dynamic properties. The main conclusions were that the mechanical properties are not strongly dependent on details of the distribution of the two components in the material nor on the crystal modifications present. The mechanical properties were found to depend primarily on the location of the glass transition temperature relative to the elongation temperature and on the presence or absence of crystalline regions. The degree of crystallinity was found to play an important role in determining the properties only at lower values of this quantity. The advantage of these blends is that the important parameters, namely, the degree of crystallinity and the location of the glass transition temperature, can be adjusted at will by varying the composition appropriately. This allows well-defined variations of the mechanical properties to be achieved.