Stabilization of a cocontinuous phase morphology by a tapered diblock or triblock copolymer in polystyrene-rich low-density polvethylene/polstyrene blends

The stability against the thermal annealing of a cocontinuous two-phase morphology developed in polystyrene (PS)/low-density polyethylene (LDPE) blends containing 80 wt % PS was investigated. Blends containing 1, 5, and 10 wt % of a tapered diblock poly(styrene-block-hydrogenated butadiene) (P(S-b-hB)) or triblock poly(styrene-block-hydrogenated butadiene-block-styrene) (P(S-hB-S)) copolymer were melt-blended with roll-mill mixing equipment. The efficiency of each of the two copolymers in stabilizing against coalescence the cocontinuous morphology was examined. The tensile properties of the resulting blends, annealed and nonannealed, were also examined in relation to the morphology induced by thermal annealing. The phase morphology was studied by optical and scanning electron microscopy. With computer-aided image analysis, it was possible to obtain a measurable characteristic parameter to quantify the cocontinuous phase morphology. When it was necessary, the extraction of one phase with a selective solvent was performed. Although the observed differences were subtle, the tapered diblock exhibited a more efficient compatibilizing activity than the triblock copolymer, particularly at a low concentration of about 2 wt %. The superiority of the tapered diblock over the triblock might be due to its ability to quantitatively locate at the LDPE/PS interface and consequently form a more efficient barrier against the subsequent breakup of the elongated structures of the cocontinuous phase morphology. The tensile properties of the triblock-modified blends were more sensitive to thermal annealing than the tapered-modified ones. This deficiency was ascribed to the phase morphology coarsening of the dispersed polyethylene phase.