Morphology of a PA / PTFE blend studied by Raman imaging

• Published in: Macromolecular symposia. Vol. 184; no. 1; pp. 275 - 286
• Main Authors: Gupper, Andreas, Wilhelm, Peter, Schmied, Mario, Ingolic, Elisabeth
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim WILEY-VCH Verlag 01.08.2002; WILEY‐VCH Verlag
• Subjects: Clusters; Imaging; Morphology; Polymer blends; Polytetrafluoroethylenes; Scanning electron microscopy
• ISSN: 1022-1360; 1521-3900
• DOI: 10.1002/1521-3900(200208)184:1<275::AID-MASY275>3.0.CO;2-9

Raman spectroscopy has been employed for morphological studies on a polymer blend of polyamide‐6,6, polytetrafluoroethylene and silicone oil used as a commercial friction bearing. New information about dimensions and distribution of polytetrafluoroethylene clusters in this composite material was revealed by Raman imaging. It was found that the applied processing conditions result in the formation of clusters, which are between 8 μm and 20 μm in diameter and distributed randomly over the whole material. The Raman results were confirmed by SEM images and SEM / EDX elemental mappings. The Raman imaging method has proved to be a good analytical tool for polymer analyses due to the speed of spectra acquisition and the easy sample preparation.