Composition dependence of tensile yield stress in filled polymers

Filled polymers are the simplest type of composite polymeric materials (e.g. polypropylenes, polyethylenes, ABS plastics), which consist of a matrix polymer as a continuous phase and a generally inorganic filler (e.g. glass beads, CaCO sub 3 , silica, talc, Wollastonite, SiO sub 2 ) dispersed in the matrix. Fillers are applied to modify various properties of polymers or simply as extenders for lowering the price/volume ratio of the material. In either case, it is essential to know the dependence of the properties on the composition (i.e. on the filler content expressed as volume fraction, psi ) to achieve an optimum with respect to the desired objective. 6 ref.--A.R.