Influence of lubricant on the properties of poly(ether ether ketone) and poly(ether ether ketone)/carbon fiber composites

An improvement in the processability of poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) and PEEK/carbon fiber (PEEK/CF) composites with less influence on the other properties is important. A novel high temperature lubricant, GENIOPLAST PELLETS (GPPS), was used to decrease the melt viscosity of PEEK and PEEK/CF composites. PEEK/GPPS and PEEK/CF/GPPS compounds were characterized by dynamic rheometry, universal tester, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results showed that a small amount of GPPS could decrease the melt viscosity of the compounds during processing, and improve the dispersion uniformity of the carbon fiber in the PEEK matrix, and further enhance the tensile strength of PEEK/CF composites, but have little effect the thermal stability of the compounds.