Effect of network structure from different processing conditions on the mechanical property of semi-crystalline polymers

Abstract

Semi-crystalline structures were prepared from different processing condition. Biaxial oriented melt were crystallized at 375 K and atmospheric pressure for 10 nanoseconds (ns), to generate a lamellar semi-crystalline structure. Similar structures were also prepared from deformation of a cubic amorphous initial structure isothermally at 375 K. For comparison, two different thermostats, the constant stress (NPT) and constant volume (NVT) conditions were applied to the system during 10 ns of crystallization. The semi-crystalline samples shared common morphological features such as in the crystallinity, crystal orientation, lamellae thickness and density distribution, etc. However, during the subsequent uniaxial tensile deformation test of the samples to strain of 0.5, different stress-strain behaviors were demonstrated. By combining the observations of morphologies during deformation tests and analysis of the stress-strain curves, conclusions were made that the effectiveness of the network had a strong influence on the mechanical property and strain hardening behavior. The oriented network from the constant stress crystallization, owing to the taut chains, gave rise to optimal mechanical response with substantial strain-hardening.