THE EFFECT OF FUNCTIONAL-GROUP CONTENT ON POLY(ETHYLENE-TEREPHTHALATE) HIGH-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE BLENDS COMPATIBILIZED WITH POLY(ETHYLENE-CO-ACRYLIC ACID)

The mechanical, thermal, and morphological behavior of poly(ethylene t erephthalate)/high density polyethylene (PET/HDPE) blends with/without poly(ethylene-co-acrylic acid) (PEAA) as a reactive compatibilizer me re investigated. The addition of PEAA improves the mechanical properti es such as flexural yield strain and impact strength when HDPE forms m atrix phase. On the other hand, when the PET is the matrix. no signifi cant improvement of mechanical properties is observed, suggesting that the crystallization rate can be an important factor in the blend comp osed of two crystalline components. The addition of PEAA also affects morphological features such as reducing the size of the dispersed phas e and making the interface obscure indicating the role of PEAA as a re active compatibilizer. The crystallinity of PET and HDPE is slightly r educed by the addition of PEAA. The content of acrylic acid (AA) in PE AA also has an effect on mechanical properties and morphology, suggest ing the added PEAA goes to the HDPE phase as well as the interface bet ween PET and HDPE.