Thermal Expansion And Viscoelastic Properties Of A Semi-Rigid Polyimide

Abstract

ABSTRACTStudies were made of the physical properties of the commercially available polyimide Upilex-SGA, which is prepared from biphenyl dianhydride and p-phenylene diamine. Annealing the Upilex-SGA for 2 hr Linder N2 at 400°C gave a film that expanded continuously when heated at a fixed rate, in contrast to the as-received film. The linear expansion showed a change of slope at 84°C and also at 295°C, the later being Tg. The thermal coefficient of linear expansion at all temperatures was very small, even above 295°C it is 27.8 × 10−6. Its stress-strain curve did not exhibit a yield point, even though its ultimate elongation is ˜23%. Similar behavior is shown by the PMDA-ODA polyimide, except its ultimate elongation is ˜70%,. The unusual stress- strain curves exhibited by these polyimides is undoubtedly caused by their liquid-crystalline morphology. The stress-relaxation modulus was measured at 0.5% extension and 12 temperatures from 30 to 330°C. Derived isochrones showed that the 1-s tensile modulus at 20°C is 9.0 GPa, but at 330°C it is 2.0 GPa. Creep curves were also measured at a stress of 30 MPa and at 10 temperatures from 30 to 340° C. Master curves prepared from the relaxation and creep data are discussed briefly and evidence is given which, show that the superposition method is not truly valid for this polyimide, which actually is not surprising.