High-Temperature XRD Analysis of Polymers

Extract

High-temperature x-ray diffraction has many applications. Applied to polymeric materials it is a useful tool for investigating changes in crystallinity, providing insight into molding and extrusion problems, and for examining solvent-resistancy problems. An example of the increasing crystailine character of a polymer as a function of temperature can be seen in figure 1. Diffraction scans at 25°C, 100°C, 150°C, and 200°C clearly show the increasing crystalline character of the potymer with an increase in temperature. Control of sample temperature for a polymer is very important, when analyzing under air, because a momentary overshoot in temperature may lead to the sample igniting. High-temperature investigations of polymers are also subject to the problem of the sample warping and bowing.