Abstract
The effects of high-energy radiation on the physical arrangement of macromolecules in atactic polypropylene (aPP) and radiation-amorphized isotactic polypropylene (iPP) were examined using the differential radial distribution function (DRDF) technique. The resultant DRDF curve for 0 Mrad aPP showed three intermolecular peaks at 6.6, 13.0, and 17.7 Å and two intramolecular peaks at 1.5 and 2.5 Å. The appearance of the periodic intermolecular DRDF peaks suggested the packing of parallel chains of ∼18 Å in the polymer. The 17.7 Å peak disappeared when the aPP sample was irradiated to 115 Mrad, indicating the occurrence of structure deterioration from 18 Å to 13 Å. As a result of severe deterioration of the intermolecular organization, DRDF curves for 400 and 1300 Mrad iPP samples each showed only one intermolecular peak at ∼7 Å. This deterioration was attributed to the crosslinking-induced increase in lattice distortions. The results were compared with previous studies on irradiation of natural rubber (NR) and polyethylene (PE). It appears that radiation was more effective in causing deterioration of the intermolecular organization in polypropylene than in NR and PE. This was explained by the different radiation chemistry of the polymers.
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Wang, C., Yeh, G. Effects of Radiation on the Structure of Polypropylene. Polym J 13, 741–747 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.13.741
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.13.741