Structure Development During Polymer Processing (NATO Science Series E: Applied Sciences-Vol. 370) Book

	Preface	xi
	List of Authors	xiii
Part I	Structure and Properties
	Polymer Structure and Morphology	3
1.	Introduction	4
2.	Conformation of Macromolecules	5
3.	Polymeric Liquid Structures	13
4.	Morphology in the Glassy State	32
5.	Summary and Conclusions	42
	References	43
	Structure and Morphology of Semicrystalline Polymers	47
1.	Amorphous Versus Crystalline State	47
2.	The Amorphous State	48
3.	The Crystalline State	49
4.	Experimental Evidence of Crystallinity in Polymers	51
5.	Basic Morphologies in Semicrystalline Polymers	55
6.	Morphologies Obtained in Polymer Processing	62
7.	Conclusions	65
8.	References	65
	Modern Structural Characterization Techniques Using Synchrotron Radiation to Study Structure Development	69
1.	Introduction	69
2.	The Early Stages of Crystallization	71
3.	Reaction-Induced Microphase Separation in Polyurethanes	79
4.	Conclusions	89
	References	90
	Crystallization Mechanisms and Relevant Theories	93
1.	Introduction	93
2.	Elements of Crystallization and Melting Thermodynamics	94
3.	Nucleation of Polymer Crystals	96
4.	Growth of Polymer Crystals	101
5.	Morphology-Based Models	107
6.	Concluding Remarks	109
	References	111
	Overall Crystallization Kinetics; Application to Transcrystallinity	113
1.	Introduction	113
2.	Classical Theories of Overall Crystallization Kinetics	115
3.	Improvement of the Classical Theories [16]	128
4.	Application to Transcrystallinity	133
5.	Conclusions	139
	References	139
	Structure-Microhardness Correlation of Polymers and Blends	145
1.	Introduction	145
2.	Basic Aspects of Indentation	146
3.	Correlation of Microhardness to Macroscopic Mechanical Properties	147
4.	Hardness Calculations	148
5.	Microhardness of Polymer Glasses	149
6.	Development of Structure	149
7.	Detection of Physical Transitions	152
8.	Hardness of Semicrystalline Polymers	153
9.	Polymorphic Changes	154
10.	Hardness Predictions of Lamellar Crystals	155
11.	Generalized Tabor Relation	157
12.	Polymer Blends	157
13.	Outlook	159
	Acknowledgments	160
	References	160
	Fracture and Fatigue Behaviour of Semicrystalline Polymers as a Function of Microstructural and Molecular Parameters	163
1.	Introduction	163
2.	Determination of the Fracture and Fatigue Behaviour by Fracture Mechanics	165
3.	Effects of Microstructural Parameters	167
4.	Effects of Crystalline and Molecular Variables	170
5.	Outlook	175
	Acknowledgements	176
	References	176
Part II	Structure Development During Processing
	Rheology and Structure Development	183
1.	Introduction	183
2.	Polymer Melt Flow and Rheology During Processing	183
3.	Structure Development in Glassy Thermoplastics During Processing	186
4.	Orientation Development in Crystallizing Thermoplastics During Processing	188
5.	Modelling Structure Development in Thick Sections	191
	References	192
	Structure and Property Development During the Melt Spinning of Synthetic Fibres	195
1.	Introduction	195
2.	A Simple Mathematical Model of the Process	197
3.	Some Key Experimental Observations	201
	Acknowledgements	217
	References	217
	Real-Time Monitoring of Fast Birefringence Changes During Crystallization of Preoriented Poly(Ethylene Terephthalate) and Poly(Lactic Acid) Films	221
1.	Introduction	221
2.	Experimental Procedures	223
3.	Effect of Heat Setting Temperature and Draw Ratio on the Birefringence of PET Films	226
4.	Mechanical, Thermal and Structural Properties of Linear and Branched PLA Films	228
5.	On-Line Determination of Birefringence by Spectral Birefringence Technique in Films of Linear and Branched PLA	231
6.	Conclusions	232
	References	232
	Post Processing Behaviour of a Semicrystalline Polymer	235
1.	Introduction	235
2.	Experimental	237
3.	Data Analysis	240
4.	Results	244
	Acknowledgements	253
	References	253
	Processing-Structure-Properties Relationships in Injection Moulded Parts	255
1.	Introduction	256
2.	Structure Development During Injection Moulding	257
3.	Thermomechanical Indices	260
4.	Experimental	261
5.	Results and Discussion	264
6.	Conclusions	274
	Acknowledgements	274
	References	275
	Physical Properties Enhancements by Composition and Microstructure Control	279
1.	Introduction	279
2.	Physical Properties Enhancement by Shear-Controlled Orientation in Injection Moulding or Extrusion	283
3.	Concluding Remarks	291
	Acknowledgements	291
	References	291
Part III	Structure Development in Blends and Composites
	Flow-Induced Mixing and Demixing in Polymer Blends	295
1.	Introduction	295
2.	Theoretical Background	296
3.	Blends Containing Homopolymers Only	299
4.	Blends Containing Copolymers	302
5.	Conclusions	307
	Acknowledgements	308
	References	309
	Microfibrillar Reinforced Composites - Another Approach to Polymer Blends Processing	311
1.	What is a Microfibrillar Reinforced Composite (MFC)?	311
2.	Manufacturing and Some Peculiarities of MFC	312
3.	Structure Development During MFC Manufacturing	315
4.	Effect of the MFC Morphology on the Mechanical Properties	316
5.	Conclusions and Outlook	323
	Acknowledgements	324
	References	324
	Processing and Properties of Polymer Microlayered Systems	327
1.	Intoduction	327
2.	Microlayer Process	328
3.	Examples of Microlayered Systems	333
	Acknowledgements	342
	References	343
	Modelling of Short Fibre-Reinforced Thermoplastics' Flows in Polymer Processing	345
1.	Introduction	345
2.	Fibre Orientation Kinetics	346
3.	Constitutive Equation for the Stress	350
4.	Application to Polymer Processing	353
5.	Conclusions	359
	References	360
	Outlook: Future Trends in Polymer Processing	365
	Author Index	367
	Subject Index	371