S B. Kharchenko

Flow induced coating of fluoropolymer additives: Development of frustrated total internal reflection imaging

In the extrusion of linear low-density polyethylene (PE), fluoropolymer processing additives (PPAs) are used to eliminate the surface defect known as “sharkskin” by coating the die wall and inducing slip at the PPA/PE interface. We describe an in situ optical method for measurement of the coating thickness by exploiting the phenomenon of frustrated total internal reflection. By correlating the optical and pressure measurements, extrudate appearance and auxiliary experiments, we can elucidate the kinetics of the coating process. The PPA droplets first adsorb in the entrance region of the die and migrate under shear stress towards the capillary exit where they act to suppress sharkskin. We find that a uniform coating in the range of 25–60 nm is sufficient for sharkskin elimination. The steady state coating thickness near the exit ranges from 200 to 400 nm depending on the shear rate and concentration. We develop a mass balance model for calculation of the steady state coating thickness which compares well w...

Charge transport in melt-dispersed carbon nanotubes

We investigate the effect of interfacial stabilizer on charge transport in polymer-dispersed carbon nanotubes. Despite mechanical contact, samples with dispersant show poor conductivity, which we attribute to a robust interfacial layer between contacted nanotubes. In comparison, results obtained when nanotubes are mechanically mixed into polymer melts without dispersant show much better conductivity. The difference is striking; at comparable loading, neat melt composites have resistivities five orders of magnitude smaller than those containing interfacial stabilizer. Our results highlight a fundamental issue for the engineering of conducting carbon nanotube composites; dispersion stability will typically be achieved at the expense of conductivity.