Gelation of poly(vinyl chloride) inside a single screw extruder and its effect on product properties

Two resin formulations were extruded through a single screw extruder, equipped with a single flighted screw, rotating at 10 rpm, at different barrel temperature settings, which resulted in different melt temperatures measured in the adapter zone. The extrudates were subsequently subjected to assessments of the gelation level by three different methods: differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), capillary rheometry (CR), and solvent absorption (SA). The pros and cons of these methods are discussed. It appears that DSC is the most accurate technique for the quantitative determination of the gelation degree (GD), with the drawback that the specimen size is very small. The CR technique, based on measurement of entrance pressure, is also capable of providing reasonable estimates of GD, with some potential inaccuracies as a result of difficulties associated with measurement or assessment of temperature rise. The SA technique provided qualitative assessments of GD in agreement with the other two methods. Ultimate tensile strength, elongation at break, solid density, and color change were also measured and were correlated to melt temperatures and the corresponding GD. Extruded specimens having GDs in the range of 60%–90% possessed satisfactory properties for both resin formulations. J. VINYL ADDIT. TECHNOL., 25:E174–E180, 2019. © 2018 Society of Plastics Engineers