Characterization of Viscoelastic Behavior of Stereoregular Poly(Isoprenes) by Relaxation Experiments
Abstract The mechanical relaxation of twelve samples of unvulcanized cis poly-(isoprene)s, including both natural and synthetic polymers, was studied over a range of temperatures. Master curves of relaxation modulus obtained from these data were used to derive relaxation spectra according to linear viscoelastic theory. A recent theory was used to calculate mean values of quantities related to the supermolecular structure which occurs spontaneously in these materials and is responsible for their viscoelastic properties. This structure is schematized in a model consisting of a system of macromolecules which interact with each other by elastic forces and frictions corresponding to points of entanglement between chains. The analysis leads to the determination, for each sample, of the number of entanglements per molecule, the physical network density, the value of relaxation parameters, and the relationship of each of these quantities to molecular weight.