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Wang Z, Sangroniz L, Xu J, Zhu C, Müller A. Polymer Physics behind the Gel-Spinning of UHMWPE Fibers. Macromol Rapid Commun 2024; 45:e2400124. [PMID: 38602184 DOI: 10.1002/marc.202400124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Gel-spinning of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers has attracted great interest in academia and industry since its birth and commercialization in the 1980s, due to unique properties such as high modulus, low density, and excellent chemical resistance. However, the high viscosity and long relaxation time greatly complicate processing. In industry, solvents, like decalin and paraffin oil, usually disentangle the physical networks and promote final drawability. From extruding the polymer solution to post-solid-stretching, many polymer physics problems that accompany high-modulus fiber gel-spinning should be understood and addressed. In this review, by detailed discussions about the effect of entanglements and intracrystalline chain dynamics on the mechanical properties of UHMWPE, theoretical descriptions of the structure formation of disentangled UHMWPE crystals, and the origin of high modulus and strength of final fibers are provided. Several physical intrinsic key factors are also discussed, revealing why UHMWPE is an ideal material for producing high-performance fibers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zefan Wang
- School of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, No. 3688, Nanhai Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518060, China
| | - Leire Sangroniz
- POLYMAT and Department of Advanced Polymers and Materials: Physics, Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 3, Donostia-San Sebastián, 20018, Spain
| | - Jian Xu
- School of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, No. 3688, Nanhai Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518060, China
| | - Caizhen Zhu
- School of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, No. 3688, Nanhai Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518060, China
| | - Alejandro Müller
- POLYMAT and Department of Advanced Polymers and Materials: Physics, Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Paseo Manuel de Lardizabal 3, Donostia-San Sebastián, 20018, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, Bilbao, 48009, Spain
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Xue J, Lu Y, Wang B, Chen J, Shen C, Zhang B. The Isothermal Melting Kinetics of Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene Crystals. Macromol Rapid Commun 2024; 45:e2300704. [PMID: 38346444 DOI: 10.1002/marc.202300704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2023] [Revised: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
The isothermal melting behaviors of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) with different entangled states (i.e., nascent and melt-crystallized samples) are studied. For two kinds of UHMWPE samples, the result shows that the relative content of survived crystals (Xs) exponentially decreases with time and reaches a constant value. It is suggested that such a melting behavior is related to the observed nonlinear growth of crystals induced by the kinetically rejected entanglements accumulated at the growth front. Additionally, the exponential decay of Xs with time provides a characteristic melting time (τ) for the melting process. Compared to the melt-crystallized UHMWPE, the τ value of nascent UHMWPE is generally longer even in a higher temperature range, which is mainly because the former has a larger entanglement density difference. Furthermore, these observations demonstrate that UHMWPEs with different entangled states have an analogous melting mechanism since they exhibit a similar melting activation energy (≈1300 kJ mol-1).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianwei Xue
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
| | - Yaguang Lu
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
| | - Binghua Wang
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
| | - Jingbo Chen
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
| | - Changyu Shen
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
| | - Bin Zhang
- School of Materials Science & Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, P. R. China
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Ju Y, Qiao Z, Xiu H, Liu X, Fu Q, Bai H. Combined effects of matrix molecular weight and crystallinity on the impact toughness of PP/EPR blends: The role of chain entanglement. POLYMER 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2023.125863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
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Time-domain NMR in polyolefin research. POLYMER 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2022.125205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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5
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Optimal Entanglement of Polymers Promotes the Formation of Highly Oriented Fibers. Macromolecules 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.2c00578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Qin Y, Song W, Chen M, Litvinov V, Men Y. Chain Entanglements and Interlamellar Links in Isotactic Polybutene-1: The Effect of Condis Crystals and Crystallization Temperature. Macromolecules 2022. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.2c00460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yanan Qin
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, 130022 Changchun, P. R. China
- School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, P. R. China
| | - Wenbo Song
- SINOPEC Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Industry, 14 North 3rd Ring East Road, 100000 Beijing, P. R. China
| | - Ming Chen
- SINOPEC Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Industry, 14 North 3rd Ring East Road, 100000 Beijing, P. R. China
| | - Victor Litvinov
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, 130022 Changchun, P. R. China
- V.Lit.Consult, Gozewijnstraat 4, 6191 WV Beek, The Netherlands
| | - Yongfeng Men
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, 130022 Changchun, P. R. China
- School of Applied Chemistry and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, P. R. China
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Competitive hydrogen bonding induced phase separation in supramolecular comb-shaped diblock copolymer. POLYMER 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2022.124620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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8
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Liao T, Yang X, Zhao X, Tang Y, Jiang Z, Men Y. Gaussian and Non-Gaussian Distributions of Fracture Properties in Tensile Stretching of High-Density Polyethylene. Macromolecules 2021. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.1c00944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Tao Liao
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, Changchun 130022, China
| | - Xiao Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, Changchun 130022, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Xintong Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, Changchun 130022, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
| | - Yujing Tang
- Sinopec Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Industry, Beijing 100013, China
| | - Zhiyong Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, Changchun 130022, China
| | - Yongfeng Men
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Renmin Street 5625, Changchun 130022, China
- University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
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Enhancing Chain Mobility of Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polyethylene by Regulating Residence Time under a Consecutive Elongational Flow for Improved Processability. Polymers (Basel) 2021; 13:polym13132192. [PMID: 34209419 PMCID: PMC8271948 DOI: 10.3390/polym13132192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2021] [Revised: 06/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Improving the processability of ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and understanding the effect of the polymeric chain mobility has long been a challenging task. Herein, we show that UHMWPE without any processing aids can be processed at a lower temperature of 180 °C compared to conventional processing temperatures (~250 °C) under a continuous elongational flow (CEF) by using an eccentric rotor extruder (ERE). By probing the effect of the residence time of UHMWPE samples under a CEF on the morphology, rheological behavior and molecular orientation, we find that the long polymer chains of UHMWPE are apt to orientate under a consecutive volume elongational deformation, thereby leading to a higher residual stress for the extruded sample. Meanwhile, the residence time of samples can regulate the polymeric chain mobility, giving rise to the simultaneous decrease of the melting defects and residual stress as well as Hermans orientation function with increasing residence time from 0 to 60 s. This also engenders the enhanced diffusion of UHMWPE segments, resulting in a defect-free morphology and higher entanglement with lower crystallinity but without causing obvious thermal oxidative degradation of UHMWPE. This interesting result could originate from the fast chain entanglement and particle welding enabled by a desirably short residence time, which could be explained by the empirical, entropy-driven melting explosion mechanism.
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