Effects of the molecular structure of styrene-isoprene block copolymers on the interfacial characteristics of polystyrene/polyisoprene blends

✍ Scribed by Won Ho Jo; Kie Hyun Nam; Jae Cheol Cho

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1996
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 597 KB
• Volume: 34
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0887-6266
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-0488(19960930)34:13<2169::aid-polb6>3.0.co;2-r

✦ Synopsis

The effects of the molecular structure of the styrene-isoprene block copolymer on the interfacial tension, the morphology and the interfacial adhesion of polystyrene/polyisoprene were investigated. A reduction in interfacial tension is observed with the addition of a small amount of copolymer, followed by a leveling off as the copolymer concentration exceeds the critical micelle concentration. The reduction in interfacial tension between polystyrene and polyisoprene is more significant when the isoprene-rich diblock copolymer is added than the cases when the symmetric or styrene-rich diblock copolymer is added. The interfacial tension data seem to be consistent with the phase morphology and the interfacial adhesion: the lower the interfacial tension, the smaller the domain size of dispersed phase and the better the interfacial adhesion. 0 1996 John