Study on structures and properties of ultra-hot drawing UHMWPE fibers fabricated via dry spinning method

Abstract High tensile strength ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers were prepared via the dry spinning method. Raw material was UHMWPE resin with 6 million viscosity-average molecular weight (Mv). Changes of morphology, mechanical properties, thermal properties and crystallization process of the fibers in the ultra-hot drawing process were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), tensile tester, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD). Results show that there was a maximum value of fracture force at a draw ratio of 40 and excessive draw ratio destroyed crystal structures in fibers and led to a decrease in the fracture force value. A shoulder peak appeared in DSC curves of ultra-drawing samples and its peak value maintained at 154°C in different samples. In addition, three peaks can be observed in all WAXD patterns of drawing samples. The mechanism of microstructural changes during the hot drawing process was elucidated.