NEW‐TPI thermoplastic polyimide: Structure and relaxation using SAXS and TSDC

Abstract

AbstractThe thermoplastic polyimide RegulusTM NEW‐TPI has been studied using small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) and thermally stimulated depolarization current (TSDC). SAXS was used to study the development of lamellar structure during isothermal or nonisothermal crystallization. The one‐dimensional electron‐density correlation function was used to determine structural parameters. The long period, lamellar thickness, and amorphous layer thickness increase as crystallization temperature increases from 300 to 360°C. By combining melting‐point data with SAXS results, we report the side and fold surface free energies of NEW‐TPI crystals, which are 29 ± 3 and 41 ± 3 erg/cm2, respectively. Real‐time SAXS was carried during nonisothermal cold‐crystallization at 5°C/min. The long period decreases, while lamellar thickness, linear crystallinity, and interphase thickness increase, with increasing temperature. These changes are explained by a crystal‐insertion model. TSDC was used as a more sensitive probe of the amorphous phase structure below 300°C. Both semicrystalline and amorphous NEW‐TPI exhibit complex TSDC behavior. Above the glass transition, amorphous NEW‐TPI has a strong TSDC peak attributed to short‐range‐ordered structures, which may serve as nucleation sites for subsequent crystallization. This peak was not seen in semicrystalline material. At the glass transition, both amorphous and semicrystalline NEW‐TPI have a strong TSDC peak. In the semicrystalline polymer, relaxation of the amorphous dipoles is slightly restricted by the crystals, which results in a smaller relaxation peak and a shift to higher temperature. Below Tg, another TSDC peak occurs which is not due to dipolar relaxation. This peak is attributed to the combined effects of space charge, electrode type, ionizable species, and interfacial charges. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.