Improving the creep resistance and tensile property of UHMWPE sheet by radiation cross-linking and annealing

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) sheet was cross-linked by γ irradiation in air with a dose of up to 300 kGy at a dose rate of 5 kGy/h and further treated by post-annealing at 120 °C for 4 h in vacuum. Variations in chemical structure, thermostability, crystallinity, creep resistance, and tensile properties were investigated and compared mainly by gel content, TGA, DSC, and creep and tensile measurements. Gel content measurements indicated that cross-linking was predominant over chain scission during irradiation and post-annealing. Radiation cross-linking resulted in an obvious improvement in the creep resistance and tensile properties of UHMWPE. Through cross-linking, the operational temperature and yield strength of the irradiated and subsequently annealed UHMWPE sheet were improved by more than 100 °C and 14%, respectively, at a dose of 300 kGy. Simultaneously, Young's modulus was increased to 1413 MPa, compared with 398 MPa of pristine UHMWPE. Annealing after irradiation further improved the creep resistance and Young's modulus. Highly cross-linked UHMWPE can even be maintained at 250 °C for a long time without any obvious deformation.