X-ray CT observation of a “mosaic-tiling” structure and a “worm-like” structure in the ternary polymer blends

Two novel phase-separation morphology are reported in the ternary polymer blends of poly(propylene)/nylon-12/poly(lactic acid) by utilizing a high-contrast X-ray computerized tomography. One is a “mosaic-tiling” structure, where each of three components forms equally-sized droplets in a three-dimensional tessellation manner. The other morphology is a “worm-like” structure. Two components of the three form successive droplets like stripe socks. These results strongly suggest the wide variety of the phase-separation morphologies in ternary polymer blends.

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