DEPARTMENT OF POLYMER MATERIALS

Research Joint laboratory Staff

Head: Ivan Fortelny, PhD
(phone +420-222518692, e-mail fortelny)

Research

The Department pursues basic research in polymer materials, their preparation and properties. Main attention is paid to: (i) study of polymer miscibility and interfacial tension in polymer systems, (ii) microrheological description and experimental investigation of the phase structure formation and evolution in immiscible polymer blends, (iii) study of the effect of reactive and copolymer-based compatibilization on structure and properties of polymer blends, (iv) development of rules for prediction of properties of polymer blends from the knowledge of their phase structure and properties of components, (v) study of the course of polymer crystallization, and (vi) investigation of degradation and stabilization of polymer materials. The results are utilized in studies of recycling commingled plastic waste and in development of new materials based on polymer blends.

The research was focused mainly on the following problems:

  • Elucidation of differences between compatibilization efficiency of styrene-butadiene block copolymers in polystyrene/polybutadiene, polystyrene/polyethylene and polystyrene/polypropylene blends.
  • Study of creep in polypropylene/elastomer/poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile) blends and its description by the model based on combination of the equivalent blocks model and modified equations of the percolation theory.
  • Effect of composition of the combined compatibilizer, developed in the department, on its compatibilization efficiency in real municipal plastics waste.
  • Analysis of the effect of breakup frequency of droplets in polymer blends on their average size in steady flow.
  • Effect of the g -ray dose on selected properties of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene. Theory of the open association suitable for description of reversible physical gels. Description of the shear-flow-induced coalescence in immiscible polymer blends.

Results are used for plastics recyclation and development of new materials for applications in industry in medicine.

Organisation Structure:

 

Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry AS CR, v.v.i.
Heyrovského nám. 2
CZ-162 06 Praha 6
Czech Republic
phone:+420 296 809 111
fax:+420 296 809 410

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