Tuning Interfacial Adhesion in Polyester/Polyamide Systems

Polymer-polymeradhesion is critical in polymer processingand application areas where lamination, welding, composites, blending,and coextrusion are involved. Polyethylene terephthalate/polyamide(PET/PA) pairs are widely used to produce bicomponent fibers. Thestrong adhesion due to the formation of chemical bonds in the interfacialregion limits post-production fiber processing. The adhesion strengthin the PET/PA systems showed that PET/PA66 had the highest adhesionenergy, followed by PET/PA6, PET/PA11, and PET/PA12 for all processingconditions. We developed a method that enables adhesion control byintroducing a poly(octadecene-alt-maleic anhydride) (POMA) alternatingcopolymer by either direct interfacial modification or addition intothe PET phase. Upon POMA introduction to the system, the reductionin interfacial adhesion strength between PET and polyamides is observed.We established the relationship between adhesion strengths in PET/polyamidesystems, processing conditions, and concentration of the POMA modifier.

Automated summary

Polymer-polymer adhesion plays a crucial role in polymer processing and applications involving lamination, welding, composites, blending, and coextrusion. PET/PA pairs are commonly used to produce bicomponent fibers, but the strong adhesion limits post-production processing. A method using a POMA alternating copolymer was developed to control adhesion by modifying the interface or adding it into the PET phase. The introduction of POMA reduced the interfacial adhesion strength between PET and polyamides.