Spinodal Phase Separation and Isothermal Crystallization Behavior in Blends of VDF/TrFE(75/25) Copolymer and Poly(1,4-butylene adipate) (I) -Spinodal Phase Separation Behavior-

Phase behavior and spinodal phase separation kinetics in binary blends of a random copolymer of vinylidene fluoride and trifluoroethylene (75/25) [P(VDF/TrFE)] and poly(l,4-butylene adipate) (PBA) have been investigated by means of optical microscopic observation and time-resolved light scattering. The blends exhibited a typical lower critical solution temperature (LCST)∼${34}^{\circ}C$ above the melting temperature of the P(VDF/TrFE) crystals over the entire blend composition range. P(VDF/TrFE) and PBA were totally miscible in the temperature gap between the melting point of P(VDF/TrFE) and the LCST. Temperature jump experiments of the 3/7 P(VDF/TrFE)/PBA blend were carried out on a light-scattering apparatus from a single-phase melt state (${180}^{\circ}C$) to a two-phase region (205∼${215}^{\circ}C$). Since the late stage of spinodal decomposition (SD) is prevalent in the 3/7 blend, SD was analyzed using a power law scheme. Self-similarity was preserved well in the late stage of SD in the 3/7 blend.