Thermal diffusivity of polyolefin composites highly filled with calcium carbonate

The thermal diffusivity measurements are usually performed in order to determine the ability of polymeric materials to transport heat and to characterize the rate of heating and cooling of plastic products. In our investigations the so-called modified Angstrom method was used, and the investigations were conducted on four types of materials: blends of commercial polyolefins (PE-HD/i-PP) and three types of composites of PE-HD/i-PP/CaCO3 where CaCO3 was modified with calcium stearate or stearic acid and waxes or was unmodified. The content of CaCO3 in all the blends was in the range between 48 and 64 wt. %. The results have been discussed in terms of the influence of calcium carbonate content, particles size and modification of the filler on the thermal diffusivity of highly filled polyolefin composites.