Abstract
PA6/PTFE blends with varying PTFE content from 3 wt.% to 15 wt.% were irradiated by ^<60>Co gamma ray with various doses (20kGy, 50kGy and 100kGy) at ambient conditions. Moisture absorption test, U-notched Charpy impact test and quasi-static tension and bending were conducted to investigate the effect of irradiation on moisture absorption and mechanical properties of the blends. It is shown that the exposure of the blend to ^<60>Co irradiation improves the tensile modulus, tensile strength and flexural modulus due to irradiation induced cross-linking in PA6 phase. However, the Charpy impact strength of the blends is much lower than the original PA6 and it decreases slightly with the irradiation dose. Moreover, the flexural modulus is found to increase to a maximum value and then decreases with further increasing the PTFE content, and the moisture absorption decreases with the increases both in PTFE content and in irradiation dose.
