Compounding of Thermoplastic Elastomers using Organosilanes

Abstract To enhance the material properties of polypropylene/rubber blends the rubber phase is crosslinked. In this study an organosilane crosslinking system is used which creates stable Si-O-Si bonds between the rubber chains and produces a polyfunctional network structure with a high crosslinking density. This organosilane system allows in principle to prepare blends which are statically or dynamically crosslinked. Results concerning the morphology of blends prepared under different compounding parameters are presented. Particular attention was directed to the interrelationship of rheological properties of the blend components and the morphological structure of the created blends. In the closing chapter of this paper the material properties of blends, including EPM or EPDM in a silane-crosslinked mode are compared with those of only physically mixed PP/EPDM-blends.