Ways to improve physico-mechanical properties of polymer composites on the basis of secondary polypropylene and natural extenders

Development of polymer composite materials is one of the most promising directions of the modern polymer materials science. Compatibility of components, for example, a polymer and an extender can cause problems in the development of such systems. To provide connectivity of components, the composite structure is extended with coupling agents. The effect of compatibilizers on the rheological and physico-mechanical behavior of a polymer compound based on the secondary polymeric raw materials extended with vegetable components is studied in this paper. It is shown that extending the composition with compatibilizers affects the melt flow index (MFI) values - the more compatibilizer there is in the composition, the higher the MFI value is, and therefore, the better its workability. At the same time, it should be noted that in case of using Kompplen EN13F1F3HH and San UMB UGOF1 as compatibilizers the regularities of the MFI change are different - the increase of MFI values is observed only when the content of the compatibilizer in the composition amounts to 1 % wt. As evidenced by rheological data, adding even a small amount of a compatibilizer results in less pronounced resilient properties of the composition containing the modifier, which reduces the possibility of manufacturing defects. Extending a composition with modifiers also affects its physico-mechanical properties. The effect of S.n U.B UGOF1 and Kompplen EN13F1F3HM modifiers is similar, while the one of Kompplen MPP5X differs. The lowest values of the elastic modulus are registered when using S.n U.B UGOF1 modifier. At the same time, the increase in the extender content in the composition reduces the elastic modulus, which has a low value even without that. Thus, as part of the study, the principal possibility to regulate the rheological and physico-mechanical behavior of polymer composites not only by extending them with compatibilizers acting as a surface active substance but also by regulating the production conditions is shown.