Abstract
Extensional properties at constant rates were measured for styrene-butadiene copolymers having various molecular weights and compositions. The result shows that the extensional behavior of block copolymers is affected strongly by the phase structure. Samples of intermediate compositions form two-phase structure composed of polybutadiene (PB) and polystyrene (PS) phases. Both the initial modulus of extension and failure behavior are mainly dominated by the deformation of the PB phase. The flow of PB chains at and beyond the failure point is obstructed by the PS phase. Deformation and flow of PS chains are dominant in the extensional behavior of the samples having low butadiene contents, in which the PS phase is plasticized by short PB chains. Time-temperature superposition can be applied to strain-rate dependence curves of failure stress and strain measured at different temperatures. The temperature dependence of shift factor aT obtained for the samples, which form two-phase structure, agree well with that for homo-polybutadiene, reflecting that the onset of flow of PB chains is the dominant factor governing the failure phenomenon. However, aT for the samples having low butadiene content is higher than that for other samples.
