Crystallization derivation of amine functionalized T 12 polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane-conjugated poly(ethylene terephthalate)

Abstract Most inorganic nucleating agents for poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) have limited nucleating ability due to poor compatibility with PET. Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS) is a type of cage-shaped organic/inorganic hybrid nanoparticles with three different particle sizes: octameric (T8), decameric (T10), and dodecameric (T12). POSS is considered as a promising nucleating agent for PET because the inorganic moieties contribute to high thermal stability and nucleation and the organic moieties can be tethered to PET chains. In contrast to T8 POSS, the nucleation ability of T12 POSS for PET has been poorly reported. In this study, our newly synthesized aminopropyl functionalized T12 POSS (A-POSS) is proposed as a potential nucleating agent for PET. The amine group of A-POSS is able to be chemically conjugated to PET chains, thereby giving a more homogeneous dispersion of T12 POSS in PET than non-functional T12 Phenyl POSS (N-POSS). Its PET composites gave a ∼1.2 fold higher crystallization temperature and ∼2.7 fold higher shear-induced crystallization rate over pristine PET. Such nucleating effects for PET is more effective than those of non-functional T12 POSS and the more widely studied T8 POSS. This strategy is potentially beneficial for the high-shear melt processes of PET such as spinning and film extrusion.