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Influence of thermal oxidation on surface and thermo-mechanical properties of polyethylene

Journal of Polymer Research volume 18, pages 2175–2184 (2011)Cite this article

Abstract

Blown low density polyethylene (LDPE) films added with oxo-biodegradable additive containing pro-oxidant were subjected to thermo-oxidation in an oven at 70 °C for varying time periods. The changes in mechanical and surface properties were studied using tensile strength, elongation at break, wettability, surface morphology using SEM, surface topology by AFM, functional groups by FTIR spectroscopy, absorbance spectra by UV-Vis spectroscopy. The thermally aged films with pro-oxidant additive added polyethylene (PE) exhibited a higher level of oxidation as revealed by increase in their carbonyl index than the pristine PE. In addition to it, the DSC melting behavior showed a slight increase in crystallinity (%C) and melting temperature (Tm) of the polymer containing oxo-biodegradable additive. The SEM micrograph reveals the increase in the size of cracks and grooves, according to the increase in the concentration of pro-oxidant additive. The surface roughness also supports the same through AFM image. The increase in the wettability and surface free energy of the thermally aged samples were attributed to the formation of hydrophilic groups on the polymer surface by thermo-oxidation. The pro-oxidant additive offers a new insight into the thermo-oxidation strategy for PE and can be widely used in packaging industry.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to express their thanks to The Director, CECRI, Karaikudi, for his kind permission. We are immensely thankful to Mr. Sampath Kumar and M/S Sri Lakshmi Narayana Plastics, Coimbatore for providing the pristine polyethylene and blended polyethylene films and for their helpful discussions. Appreciation is also extended to Sophisticated Test & Instrumentation Centre (STIC), Cochin University of Science and Technology, Cochin, Kerala and Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility (SAIF), IIT-Madras, Chennai for providing analytical support. I sincerely thank Dr. Shibu M Eapen, STIC, Cochin and Mr. P.Jayamurugan, Dept of. Physics, Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore for providing support in analytical studies and guidance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Microbial-Corrosion Laboratory, Central Electrochemical Research Institute, Karaikudi, 630006, India

    Balasubramanian Suresh, S. Maruthamuthu & N. Palanisamy

  2. Department of Microbiology & Biotechnology, Shri Nehru Maha Vidyalaya College of Arts and Scienec, Coimbatore, 641021, India

    Balasubramanian Suresh & R. Ragunathan

  3. Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati, 781039, Assam, India

    Alika Khare

  4. Alagappa Chettiar College of Engineering and Technology, Karaikudi, 630 004, India

    V. S. Muralidharan

  5. Department of Polymer Engineering, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University, Coimbatore, 641105, India

    M. Kannan

  6. Department of Physics, Sri Shakthi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore, 641062, India

    K. Navaneetha Pandiyaraj

Authors
  1. Balasubramanian Suresh
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  2. S. Maruthamuthu
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  3. Alika Khare
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  4. N. Palanisamy
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  5. V. S. Muralidharan
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  6. R. Ragunathan
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  7. M. Kannan
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  8. K. Navaneetha Pandiyaraj
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Correspondence to Balasubramanian Suresh.

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Suresh, B., Maruthamuthu, S., Khare, A. et al. Influence of thermal oxidation on surface and thermo-mechanical properties of polyethylene. J Polym Res 18, 2175–2184 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-011-9628-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10965-011-9628-0

Keywords

  • LDPE
  • Pro-oxidant additive
  • Thermo-oxidation
  • Wettability
  • FTIR
  • AFM