Abstract
Blends of Polystyrene (PS) and Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) were twin screw extruded, two PSs, with low and high melt flow rate (MFR) were used and their feasibility within PCL investigated by means of torque rheometry, mechanical tests, heat deflection temperature (HDT) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM); predictive models were utilized to evaluate interfacial adhesion in PS/PCL blends. Results show that no decreasing was verified in torque rheometry plots suggesting thermally stable blends; elastic modulus decreased and elongation at break increased in PS/PCL blends compared to neat PS. PS/PCL blends with low MFR PS and higher PCL amount are more thermodynamically stable. Higher HDT was verified in PS/PCL blends. The trends observed applying predictive models are indicative of poor adhesion between PCL and PS, agreeing with coalescence and phase segregation as verified in SEM images. PS/PCL systems with higher MFR PS presented the best results.
Highlights
Our society has realized that using persistent polymers for short term applications, which are one kind of main environmental pollution sources, is a misfortune for our planet earth
The morphological characteristics are associated to the chemical interaction, phase coalescence, and miscibility mechanisms between PCL and PS, as further presented by mechanical properties and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images
Increasing the PCL content of the blends promotes a decrease in the torque and in the blend viscosity. This reduction is due to the lower viscosity of PCL in this temperature range, which contributes to a decrease in the viscosity of PS/PCL system as a whole
Summary
Our society has realized that using persistent polymers for short term applications, which are one kind of main environmental pollution sources, is a misfortune for our planet earth. It has a solid (glassy) state at room temperature but flows if heated above about 100°C, its glass transition temperature. Its uses include protective packaging (such as packing peanuts and CD and DVD cases), containers (such as "clamshells"), lids, bottles, trays, tumblers, and disposable cutlery As it is non-biodegradable and takes years to degrade, it has contributed to the increase in environmental damages; it is a focus of controversy among environmentalists (Paul and Newman, 1978; Di Lorenzo, 2003; Baltá-Calleja et al, 2004; Romeo et al, 2009; Shabbir et al, 2013)
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