Mechanical and thermal properties of calcium carbonate-filled PP/LLDPE composite
(2413–2421)Journal of Applied Polymer  Science 121 #4 (2011)
Ghalia, Hassan and Yussuf, Malaysia and Libya, studied the mechanical properties, melting, glass transition, and crystallization behavoir of 80 phr polypropylene (PP) with varying weights of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) at 10, 20/ 20 wt % CaCO3, 30, 40, and 50 phr.  It has been confirmed that increasing the LLDPE content trends to decreases the tensile strength and flexural strength. However, increasing the LLDPE content led to increases in the impact strength of PP/LLDPE blends. It was also found that up to 40 phr the corresponding melting point (Tm) was not effected with increasing LLDPE content. Each compound has more than one Tg, which was informed that there is a brittle-ductile transition in fracture nature of these blends, the amount of material plastically deformed on the failure surface seems to increase with the increasing the LLDPE content. And PP/LLDPE blends at temperature (23°C) showed a ductile fracture mode characterized by the co-existence of a shear yielding process; whereas at lower temperature (−20°C) the fractured surfaces of specimens appear completely.  (RDC 5/23/2011)