Material Properties Effects of processing parameters on the mechanical properties of polypropylene random copolymer

The mechanical properties of polypropylene random copolymer (PP-R) with different processing parameters were studied. Special attention is devoted to the investigation of the influence of masterbatch addition on the variation in the mechanical properties of injection moulded PP-R. Tensile, instrumented Charpy impact, Shore D hardness, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and Vicat softening temperature (VST) tests were conducted on the test samples containing different colour masterbatches varying from 0.5 to 10 wt%. The observed changes in the mechanical behaviour are explained by the type and level of masterbatch content. The natural UV weathering performance of the PP-R material was studied from the masterbatch type point of view. The effect of processing parameters on material performance was studied on samples which were directly obtained from extruded pipes and on injection moulded samples. Finally, the effects of storage time on the polymer properties were investigated. q 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.