Modification of Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Recycled PET by Vinyl Acetate (VAc) Monomer Grafting Using Gamma Irradiation

Vinyl acetate (VAc) monomer of different percentage was grafted onto the recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) films using gamma irradiation. The properties of these modified films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), mechanical properties testing (Tensile strength, Elongation at break), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). The Tensile Strength (TS) of the modified PET film increased by 132.25 % to the highest value of 50.12 MPa at 15% VAc monomer concentration at 3 kGy gamma dose, while the elongation at break (EB) decreased by 31.83 %. FTIR was used to investigate the molecular interaction of the modified films. TGA revealed that curve of the modified PET film shifted toward higher temperature region by 95 °C, which is very close to that of PET film made from virgin flakes. The results indicate that modified PET films of better mechanical and thermal properties were successfully prepared using VAc monomer grafting by gamma irradiation technique.