Crystallization behavior and thermal stability of poly(butylene succinate)/poly(propylene carbonate) blends prepared by novel vane extruder

This work focused on the study of crystallization behavior and thermal stability of degradable poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) blends prepared by vane extruder based on elongation force field, which is novel equipment for polymer processing. Dicumyl peroxide (DCP) was applied in this work as compatibilizer for PBS/PPC blend. Crystallization behavior and melting behavior of the blends were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) testing. Thermal stability of the blends was studied by thermogravimetric (TG) testing. Furthermore, the melt flow indices (MFI) of the blends were examined by a MFI instrument. The results showed that the crystallization temperature of PBS decreased with the addition of PPC and DCP. The glass transition temperature of PPC increased and the melting temperature of the blend increased with the addition of PPC and DCP, which indicated that the entanglement between the molecular chains of PBS and PPC was enhanced. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that a two-step decomposition process of the blend occurred due to the different thermal resistance of PBS and PPC, and the addition of PBS reduced the decomposition rate of PPC. Moreover, the addition of PBS improved the melt flow property of PPC.