Reactive melt blends of thermoplastic polyolefins, MAH-g-PP and nylon 6

Reactive melt blends of an ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer (EPDM) based thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene (MAH-g-PP), and nylon 6 were prepared in a single screw extruder and evaluated in terms of morphological, rheological, thermal, dynamic mechanical, and mechanical properties of the blends. It was found that MAH-g-PP-co-nylon 6 copolymers were in situ formed and acted as effective compatibilizers for polypropylene (PP) and nylon 6. Phase separation of PP and EPDM in TPE increased with the addition and increasing amount of MAH-g-PP and nylon 6, leading to decreased glass transition temperature (T-g) of TPE and increased crystalline melting temperature (T-m) of PP. Copyright (C) 2004 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.