Preparation, Crystallization Behavior, and Melting Characteristics of β-Nucleated Isotactic Polypropylene Blends with Polyamide 6

beta-Nucleated isotactic polypropylene (iPP) blends with polyamide 6 (PA6) were prepared with a novel and highly efficient nano-CaCO3-supported beta-nucleating agent. Maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (pp-g-MA), glycidyl methacrylate grafted polypropylene (PP-g-GMA), maleic anhydride grafted poly(ethylene octene) (POE-g-MA), and maleic anhydride grafted poly(ethylene vinyl acetate) (EVA-g-MA) elastomers were added to the blends as compatibilizers. The nonisothernial crystallization behavior and melting characteristics of beta-nucleated iPP and its blends were investigated with differential scanning calorimetry and wide-angle X-ray diffraction. The results indicated that the beta-iPP content in the beta-nucleated iPP blends depended not only oil the preparation conditions but also oil the coinpatibilizer type. A high beta-iPP content (>95%) in the beta-nucleated iPP/PA6 blends was obtained. The addition of PP-g-MA, POE-g-MA, and EVA-g-MA to the beta-nucleated iPP/PA6 blends increased the content of beta-iPP but decreased the crystallization temperature of iPP in the beta-nucleated iPP/PA6 blends. However, the addition of PP-g-GMA decreased the content of beta-iPP in the beta-nucleated iPP/PA6 blends. (C) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. j Appl Polyni Sci 112: 1-8, 2009