Polypropylene modified with nucleating agent through microemulsion method

The effect of sodium benzoate(SB) nucleating agent using microemulsion as nano-vehicle on the mechanical properties and crystallization behavior of polypropylene was studied. SB was solubilized by adding predetermined amount of water, mineral oil, 1-hexanol and Tween 60 dropwise to obtain a single-phase microemulsion. Both SB microemulsion and SB powder were used for PP modification through melt compounding. The results of mechanical properties, small angle X-ray scattering(SAXS), polarizing microscope (POM)and DSC show that the microemulsion method can improve the dispersion of nucleating agent and the orientation of PP. The flexural strength and moduli of PP modified with SB microemulsion are much higher than those of PP modified with SB powder using conventional mixing method. More crystal nuclei can be formed during the crystallization of PP and the crystallinity of PP is further increased when SB was loaded by microemulsion method compared with used in powder form.