Effect of Feeding Strategy on the Properties of PP/Recycled EPDM Blends

Abstract

Abstract In this work, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) were produced based on polypropylene (PP) and recycled ethylene-propylene-diene monomer (r-EPDM) through twin-screw extrusion followed by injection molding. In particular, the effect of different feeding strategies (component introduction order and position along the screw) and r-EPDM content (0, 20, 35, 50 and 65% wt.) were studied. From the materials produced, morphological and mechanical characterizations were carried out. The results show that feeding strategy has a substantial influence on dispersion and compatibility between PP and r-EPDM. The main result is that r-EPDM can significantly increase PP impact strength (495%) with optimized processing conditions.