A study on structure and properties of PPy-UHMWPE fibers

In view of the poor interfacial bonding performance between the ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene(UHMWPE) fiber and resin,this research attempted to make polypyrrole-ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene(PPy-UHMWPE) composite fibers by liquid-phase deposition polymerization,using ferric chloride as the oxidizing agent.After that,the epoxy resin micro-droplets with a diameter of 300-700 μm were put on the fiber,and the pulled out experiments were carried out on the fiber/micro-drop specimens.The experimental results showed that the interfacial shear strength between the PPy-UHMWPE fiber and epoxy resin was 2 times higher than that of untreated fiber and epoxy resin.The surface morphology and structure of the fibers before and after treatment were investigated respectively by SEM,FT-IR,DSC and DMA,and it was found there is no chemical bond between PPy and UHMWPE chain in the PPy-UHMWPE fibers.PPy-UHMWPE fibers exhibited monomorph characteristics and the melt point decreased a little.