Processing, Structure and Property Relationships in Commercial Thermotropic Liquid Crystalline Polymers
Author | : Stanley Rendon |
Publisher | : |
Total Pages | : |
Release | : 2006 |
ISBN-10 | : OCLC:71062106 |
ISBN-13 | : |
Rating | : 4/5 (06 Downloads) |
Book excerpt: Thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers (TLCPs) offer considerable promise as high strength/lightweight engineering materials. Their excellent mechanical properties are derived from the spontaneous ordering of stiff polymer molecules in the melt state, which is ultimately translated into high molecular orientation in finished products. Understanding the effect of processing on molecular orientation, and specifically the role and mechanisms by which flow fields impact molecular orientation, is thus a prerequisite to rational design of processes that exploit and enhance the characteristics of TLCPs. The lack of fundamental knowledge to rationally anticipate structure development during processing of commercial main-chain TLCPs however, has significantly hindered the wide spread applicability of these materials. In light of the need for improved understanding of flow-orientation relationships in TLCPs, this thesis presents the first coordinated attempt to combine fundamental studies of orientation development in well-defined simple flows (simple shear) and complex processing flows (extrusion and injection molding) using in situ x-ray scattering methods, with structure and property investigations of injection molded plaques made from commercial TLCPs.