Abstract
Olefin block copolymers can improve the compatibility between polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). The work studied the impact of ethylene-propylene multiblock copolymer (PP-b-PE) and ethylene-octene block copolymer (OBC) on the crystallization behavior, mechanical properties, phase structure, and interfacial interactions of HDPE/PP blends. The result showed that PP-b-PE promotes the crystallization temperature and rate of both HDPE and PP, while OBC primarily affects the crystallization behavior of HDPE. The addition of PP-b-PE, as evidenced by small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), further weakened the interface region between HDPE and PP compared to OBC, indicating enhanced compatibility between HDPE and PP, further confirmed by the stronger adhesion of PP-b-PE to PP and HDPE compared to OBC in peel test. Surface morphology and surface energy analysis demonstrated that PP-b-PE can form a core-shell structure with PP by encapsulating PP, similar to OBC-PP core-shell structure, reducing the interfacial tension between HDPE and PP that effectively transfers stress to the PP phase. The improved compatibility of HDPE/PP resulted in higher elongation at break and equivalent impact strength to HDPE.
Published Version
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