Tear behavior of polyester‐based coated textiles after thermo‐oxidative aging

Abstract In this article, a new method to characterize the tear behavior of coated textiles using fracture mechanics is proposed. The energy dissipated in tearing (EDT) of as‐received and thermally aged samples of polyester fabric, polyvinyl acetate rubber coating, and textile‐coating composites was calculated and compared. The EDT of the coated fabric displayed a slightly smaller value than the fabric alone, whereas the EDT of the coating was found to be negligible when compared with the other two. The presence of the coating is believed to have a detrimental effect on the tearing behavior of the coated fabric as it hinders interfilament slippage. A master curve of EDT retention vs. aging time for noncoated and coated fabric samples was constructed using the time–temperature superposition principle and fitted using the Hill equation. Fourier transform infrared analyses carried out on aged fabric samples hinted at a possible chain scission process, whereas the crystallinity of fabric samples, calculated via differential scanning calorimetry, was found to decrease after thermal aging. Scanning electron microscopy images revealed an increase in surface roughness after aging that may reduce interfilament friction. These results, coupled to an increase in the adhesion strength between fabric and coating, are likely the cause of the reduction of EDT noticed in aged coated and noncoated fabrics compared with as‐received ones. POLYM. COMPOS., 2012. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers