• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.143-151
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• 2006

We analyzed the non-Newtonian and non-isothermal flow in a single screw extruder system and investigated the mixing performance with respect to the screw speed and the screw pitch. The viscosity of polymer melt was described with Carreau-Yasuda model. The mixing performance was computed numerically by tracking the motions of particles in the screw element system. The extent of mixing was characterized in terms of the deformation rate, the residence time distribution, and the strain. The results revealed that the high screw speed reduces the residence time but increases the deformation rate while the small screw pitch increases the residence time. It is concluded that the high screw speed increases the dispersive mixing performance and the small screw pitch increases the distributive mixing performance.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.61-65
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• 2001

Thermoplastic nanocomposites based on the copolymers of polypropylene (PP)-polystyrene (PS) and organically modified montmorillonite (org-MMT) were produced by using power ultrasonic wave in an intensive mixer. Owing to the unique action of the ultrasonic wave, free radicals of styrene monomers and macroradicals of PP were generated, by which copolymers of PP and PS were formed. Another important aspect of using ultrasonic wave during the mixing process was to enhance nano-scale dispersion of org-MMT by destructing the agglomerates of org-MMT in the polymer matrix. Optimum conditions for the in-situ copolymerization and melt intercalation were studied with various concentrations of styrene monomer, sonication time and different kinds of clay. It was found that a novel attempt carried out in this study yielded further improvement in the mechanical performance of the nanocomposites compared to those produced by the conventional melt mixing process.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.147-152
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• 2004

Ultrasound-assisted melt mixing was applied to blending polystyrene (PS) and low density polyethylene(LDPE). The influence of the ultrasonic irradiation on the morphology and mechanical properties of the blends was investigated. It was observed that the domain sizes of the blend were significantly reduced and phase stability was well sustained even after a thermal treatment. Such morphological feature was consistent with the improvements in mechanical performance of the blends. The desirable results of ultrasonic compatibilization are mainly attributed to the in-situ formation of PS-LDPE copolymers as confirmed by a proper separation experiment. An important relationship between ultrasonic irradiation time and mechanical properties is revealed and an issue on the thermal stability of the blend is discussed.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2007

By combining ultrasonic energy which is essential for the chain scission of polymer molecules and a multifunctional agent (MFA) having double bonds at its ends, we were able to modify the molecular structure of polycarbonate (PC) from linear to a branched structure during melt processing. The three double bonds in chain ends of MFA were expected to act as sites for trapping macroradicals of PC during the course of ultrasound-assisted mixing process. The transformation of molecular structure of PC was confirmed by the measurements of rheological properties of the modified PC. After the ultrasonic irradiation of PC together with MFA, increase in complex viscosities and shear-thinning behavior were observed. The Cole-Cole plot and measurement of extensional viscosities revealed the characteristic features of branched structure with well-defined extensional behavior which is comparable to that of a commercial branched PC.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.17-24
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• 1997

PET/PHE blends were prepared by the mixing of poly(ethylene terephthalate) and poly(hydroxyether of bisphenol A) at melt state above PET melting temperature and modified PET fibers having less than 5 wt% of PHE were also prepared by the melt spinning of the PET/PHE blends. The PET/PHE blends were able to prepare by means of physical mixing concept, except the chemical interaction between hydroxyl groups of PHE and ester groups of PET. It has been revealed that the modified PET fibers have some hydrophilic properties such as low contact angle and easy-dyeable characters.

• Carbon letters
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.86-92
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• 2015

Multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)/polycarbonate (PC) nanocomposite was prepared by direct melt mixing to investigate the effect of the shear rate on the surface resistivity of the nanocomposites. In this study, an experiment was carried out to observe the shear induced orientation of the MWCNT in the polymer matrix using a very simple melt flow indexer with various loads. The compression-molded, should be eliminated. MWCNT/PC nanocomposite sample exhibited lower percolation thresholds (at 0.8 vol%) and higher electrical conductivity values than those of samples extruded by capillary and injection molding. Shear induced orientation of MWCNT was observed via scanning electron microscopy, in the direction of flow in a PC matrix during the extrusion process. The surface resistivity rose with increasing shear rate, because of the breakdown of the network junctions between MWCNTs. For real applications such as injection molding and the extrusion process, the amount of the MWCNT in the composite should be carefully selected to adjust the electrical conductivity.

• Fibers and Polymers
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.270-274
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• 2004

Blends of poly(l-lactide) (PLA) and low density polyethylene (LDPE) were prepared by melt mixing in order to improve the brittleness of PLA. A reactive compatibilizer with glycidyl methacrylate (GMA), PE-GMA, was required as a compatibilizer due to the immiscibility between PLA and LDPE. It contributes to reduce the domain size of dispersed phase and enhance the tensile properties of PLA/LDPE blends, especially for PLA matrix blends. A reaction product between PLA and PE-GMA, which was formed during melt-mixing and considered to act as a reactive compatibilizer, was characterized using $ ^1H-NMR$ spectroscopy.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.42-51
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• 1998

Hydrogen in atmosphere can easily dissolve in melt of light metal alloys. Increasing demand for recycling of light metal a alloys has, therefore, focused attention on the removal of hydrogen gas, and alloy addition in melt has become an imporLant r refining process. For this purpose behaviors of mixing and hydrogen degassing in impeller agitated refming vessel with/without barnes were investigated. Flow patterns, mixing time behavior and kinetics of degassing in various agitating conditions were analysed in watet model experiments. And, numerical analysis on turbulent flow pattern in impeller agitated vessels was performed.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.165-170
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• 2005

In this study, high intensity ultrasound was employed to induce mechano-chemical degradation during melt mixing of polycarbonate (PC) and a series of styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) copolymers. It was confirmed that generation of macroradicals of constituent polymers can lead to in-situ copolymer formation by their mutual combination, which should be an efficient path to compatibilize immiscible polymer blends and stabilize their phase morphology in the absence of other chemical agents. Based on the effectiveness of the compatibilization by ultrasound assisted mixing process, we investigated the effects of viscosity ratio of PC and SAN and AN content in SAN on the compatibilization of PC/SAN blends. It was found that effectiveness of compatibilization is optimal when the AN content is in the range of favorable interaction with PC and the viscosity of the matrix is higher than that of the dispersed phase. In addition, changes in the interfacial tension between PC and SAN were assessed by examining relaxation spectra which were obtained from measuring rheological properties of ultrasonically treated blends.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.181-190
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• 2014

Melt grafting of itaconic acid (IA) onto an ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer (EPDM) with various organic peroxide initiators was performed. Finding the optimum mixing conditions and concentration of ingredients is critical for effective grafting and optimum properties of grafted materials. This study focused on the effects of mixing conditions (temperature and time), initiator type/concentration and monomer concentration on the grafting degree and efficiency, melt flow index, and gel content of EPDM-g-IA. The initiator, 2,5-dimethyl-2,5-di(tert-butyl peroxy)-hexane (T-101), appeared to meet for the best grafting degree (1.91%). The grafting degree increased markedly by increasing the amounts of monomer IA and initiator T-101. The grafting degree also increased by increasing mixing temperature and time. The optimum monomer and initiator concentrations and reaction temperature and time were found to be about 5wt%/0.05wt% and $160^{\circ}C$/15min, respectively. It was found that the physical properties of EPDM-g-IA were higher than those of the pristine EPDM.