Mechanical and thermal properties of composites of cis and trans-polyisoprene blends filled with Al-powder

The experimental results on mechanical and thermal properties of composites of Al-powder filled cis-polyisoprene (CPI) and trans-polyisoprene (TPI) blends measured using dynamic mechanical analyser (DMA) and transient plane source (TPS) technique, respectively have been presented. Structural characterization of these composites has been done using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDX). XRD measurements do not show the presence of Al-powder at its low concentration in the blend but the presence is confirmed at higher concentrations by the occurrence of corresponding peaks. Also increase in concentration of Al-powder increases crystallinity and crosslink density. Results on mechanical and thermal properties show that increase in concentration of Al-powder in the CPI/TPI blends increases glass transition temperature and improves the mechanical and thermal properties. This improvement in both properties of CPI/TPI blends due to incorporation of Al powder has been explained in terms of crystallinity and crosslink density.

The experimental results of DMA and TPS on Tan δ and thermal conductivity of CPI/TPI blends with different wt.% of Al-powder respectively have been presented. The curves of Tan δ show that the peak is shifted towards a higher temperature and the height of the peak decreases with the increase in concentration of Al powder. Results on thermal conductivity depicts that addition of Al-powder to CPI/TPI blends continuously improves the process of thermal conduction through the CPI/TPI matrix.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights
► Low amount of Al powder in CPI/TPI blends does not show any peak in XRD patterns.
► Incorporation of Al-powder in CPI/TPI blends increases glass transition temperature.
► Storage modulus increases with increasing amount of Al-powder in CPI/TPI blends.
► Incorporation of Al-powder in CPI/TPI blends increases the thermal conductivity of the material.
► Increase in concentration of Al-powder in blends increases crosslink density as well as crystallinity.