Dynamic Mechanical Analysis of Glass Mat-Reinforced Polypropylene (GMT-PP)

Abstract

DMA spectra were taken from tensile loaded neat and glass-fiber mat- reinforced polypropylene (GMT-PP) with different reinforcement fractions ( Vf). Reliable data were achieved by using rectangular specimens of proper dimension, i.e., having a clamped surface of 60 x 15 mm2. It was established that the β- or Tg-transition of PP re mains unaffected by adding GF mat. This was attributed to the fact that GF does not inter fere with the crystallization. The α-transition, linked to the crystalline morphology, disap peared by GF mat incorporation. It is reasonable that the GF mat, wetted by the matrix, overtakes the control in the rubbery region (between Tg and melting temperature, Tm) for the deformability from the matrix in the unreinforced state. The complex dynamic tensile modulus ( E*) of the GMT-PP's changed linearly with Vf for various temperatures, which allows a reliable estimation of the stiffness for different GMT-PP types.