The effects of the addition of epoxidized natural rubber/maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene blend as a compatibilizing agent (CA) on the properties of natural rubber (NR)/polypropylene (PP) thermoplastic elastomer blend were studied. The blends were prepared in the molten state at 180°C using a Brabender Plasticorder at a rotor speed of 60 r min−1. Evidence of compatibilization was obtained from the Brabender plastograms and from the mechanical properties results as well as the morphological analysis. It was found that the addition of the CA at different contents resulted in an increase of the tensile strength and Young’s modulus and a decrease of the elongation at break. It was also found that the melting temperature remained unchanged, the % crystallinity decreased, but the thermal stability was not affected. The morphology revealed a more homogeneous distribution of the dispersed PP phase for the CA-containing systems compared to the control NR/PP blend. These effects were attributed to the interactions that developed with the blend constituents through the functional groups of the CA.

中文翻译：

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天然橡胶-聚丙烯热塑性弹性体共混物的增容

研究了添加环氧化天然橡胶/马来酸酐接枝聚丙烯共混物作为增容剂（CA）对天然橡胶（NR）/聚丙烯（PP）热塑性弹性体共混物性能的影响。在 180°C 下使用 Brabender Plasticorder 以 60 r min-1 的转子速度在熔融状态下制备共混物。从布拉本德塑性图和机械性能结果以及形态分析中获得了增容的证据。发现不同含量的CA的加入导致拉伸强度和杨氏模量的增加以及断裂伸长率的降低。还发现熔化温度保持不变，％结晶度降低，但热稳定性不受影响。与对照 NR/PP 共混物相比，形态表明含 CA 体系的分散 PP 相分布更均匀。这些影响归因于通过 CA 的官能团与混合成分发展的相互作用。