ORIENTATION AND RELAXATION IN UNIAXIALLY STRETCHED POLY(METHYL METHACRYLATE)-POLY(STYRENE-CO-ACRYLONITRILE) COMPATIBLE BLENDS

The orientation and relaxation of both polymer chains in compatible blends of poly(methyl methacrylate)-poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile) (PMMA-SAN) have been studied using Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy. The influence of strain rate and stretching temperature on orientation have been measured. In these blends, where inter-chain interactions are almost nonexistent, both polymers orient differently over the whole concentration range, with the PMMA chains being always more oriented than the SAN chains. Orientation relaxation master curves have also been established. A change in molecular weight between entanglements does not seem to be the main factor influencing orientation and relaxation, but use of the monomeric friction coefficient, which reflects local mobility and interactions, as a scaling factor allows one to obtain two general master curves which are representative of the overall behaviour of the PMMA and SAN chains in their compatible blends.