Studying polymer crystallization at the melt/flat substrate interface
using atomic force microscopy – substrate detachment technique
A. Tracz, J.K. Jeszka I, I. Kucinska, S. Masirek, G.Ungar1, S.Talebi 2, S.Rastogi 2,3
Center of Molecular and Macromolecular Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences, Lodz,
Poland
1Department of Engineering Materials, University of Sheffield, UK,2Eindhoven
University of Technology, The Netherlands,3Loughborough University, UK
Simulations and some experimental results show that in a vicinity of a solid wall a
polymer chain configuration and mobility are different as compared to bulk melt. At
the solid surface a preferential orientation, elongation and flattening of polymer coil is
observed in experiments and in simulations. It evidently has an influence on the
crystallization process and final morphology of the polymer close to solid walls.
Crystallization at the polymer melt/solid interface can be studied using the substrate
detachment technique. The technique allows to study the morphology of a contact
layer by atomic force microscopic (AFM) imaging of a fracture occurring at or very
close to the polymer/substrate interface (contact layer).Using this technique many
important issues of polymer crystallization like epitaxial growth, the shape of the
lamellar growth front, the mechanism of lamellar growth at the interface, role of
entanglement, role of nanoparticles etc. can be addressed.
The lecture will be focused on the crystallization of various polyethylenes - from long
chain, monodisperse alkanes C390H782 to ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene
UHMPE (Mw 8 000 000) at the surfaces of model, flat substrates (HOPG, Mica,
MoS2, Si/SiO2).
References
Influence of Crystallization Conditions on the Morphology of the Contact Layer of Polyethylene
Crystallized on Graphite: AFM Studies.
A. Tracz, J.K. Jeszka, I. Kucińska, J-P. Chapel, G. Boiteux, M. Kryszewski. J. Appl. Polym.Sci. 86,
1329 (2002)
Formation of highly ordered, unusually broad polyethylene lamellae in contact with atomically flat
solid surfaces.
A.Tracz, I. Kucinska, and J.K. Jeszka, Macromolecules 36, 10130-10132, (2003)
Interface Structure of Epitaxial Polyethylene Crystal Grown on HOPG and MoS 2Substrates
Y. Takenaka, H. Miyaji, A. Hoshino, A. Tracz, J.K.Jeszka, I.Kucinska, Macromolecules 37, 9667
(2004)
The Influence of Micro- and Nanoparticles on Model Atomically Flat Surfaces on Crystallization of
Polyethylene
A.Tracz, I.Kucinska, J.K.Jeszka, European Polymer Journal 41, 501-509 (2005)
AFM Study of Lamellar Structure of Melt-Crystallized n-Alkane C390H782
A. Tracz , G. Ungar, Macromolecules 38,4962-4965(2005)
Unusual crystallization of polyethylene at melt/atomically flat interface: Lamellar thickening growth
under normal pressure
A.Tracz, I.Kucinska, J.K. Jeszka JK, Polymer 47, 7251-7258 (2006)
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