Microdomain structure in plasticized PVC

Abstract

Several electron microscope techniques have been used to characterize the microdomain morphology of plasticized PVC. The plasticizer was found to be heterogeneously distributed in samples processed at low temperatures. The 100—200-Å microdomains, which are essentially unplasticized, do not fuse at temperatures up to 165°C. However, at 180°C they begin to fuse, resulting in a more homogeneous distribution of the plasticizer. With increasing plasticizer level, the additional plasticizer was found to favor regions where it was already present, the unplasticized regions being almost unaffected. Milling time at 165°C was found to have little effect on the plasticizer distribution.