Effect of a styrene-butadiene copolymer on the phase structure and impact strength of polyethylene/high-impact polystyrene blends

The effect of a styrene-butadiene block copolymer on the phase structure an d impact strength of high-density and low-density polyethylene/high-impact polystyrene blends with various compositions was studied. For both the blen ds, the type of the phase structure was not affected by addition of a styre ne-butadiene compatibilizer. The localization and structure of the compatib ilizer in the blends were dependent on their composition. Addition of the c ompatibilizer improved impact strength of the blends in the whole concentra tion range. The improvement was the largest for blends with a low amount of the minor phase. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.