Abstract
The primary nucleation rate I and radial growth rate G of the isothermal spherulitic growth of poly(ethylene oxide) in tripropionin solutions of 5, 10, and 30 wt% polymer concentrations were studied by direct in situ observation using a CCD camera. I was found to decrease with pre-annealing at 200°C up to ca. 200 h, while G was almost constant. These results suggest that there exist micro-residuals of a crystalline-like structure that act as dominant seeds for primary nucleation and that they become dissolved with structural relaxation during pre-annealing, resulting in the solution approaching a homogeneous state. The supercooling dependencies of I and G were independently investigated, and it was found that the fold surface free energy and activation energy of the polymer diffusion increase with decreases in the polymer content of the solution. The frictional interaction between the polymer and solvent is also discussed on the basis of the reaction rate theory of Kramers.
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Sasaki, T., Yamamoto, Y. & Takahashi, T. Primary Nucleation Rate and Radial Growth Rate of Poly(ethylene oxide) Spherulite in Viscous Solutions. Polym J 32, 263–268 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.32.263
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1295/polymj.32.263