Blends of new, all-aromatic liquid-crystalline polymers and poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Thermal, mechanical, dynamical mechanical and morphological investigations are reported of two series of blends of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) with two nematogenic random polymers synthesized in our laboratory. The nuc leant effect of low amounts of the liquid-crystalline component (LCP) is ev idenced by thermal analysis for both polymers. At higher LCP contents this effect disappears but a new influence on the melting enthalpy of PET emerge s, although at contents of the random polymer that are remarkably different for the two series of blends. The coupling of mechanical tests with a morp hological study allowed elucidation of the reinforcing mechanism of one of the nematogenic polymers and the explanation of the discontinuity in the ri se of Young's modulus shown by these blends. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.