Dissolving of Ultra‑high Molecular Weight Polyethylene Assisted Through Supercritical Carbon Dioxide to Enhance the Mechanical Properties of Fibers

The molecular weight of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene(UHMWPE)fbers is severely decreased compared with raw materials due to high temperature and strong shearing in the dissolving process.In this study,we reported a novel method to assist the dissolving of UHMWPE in parafn oil without severe degradation in order to improve the tensile strength of resultant fbers.UHMWPE fbers with relatively high molecular weight and more excellent disentanglement efect were prepared by gel-spinning with UHMWPE suspension treated with supercritical carbon dioxide(SC-CO_(2)).The dynamic thermomechanical,mechanical and crystalline properties of UHMWPE extracted fbers and drawn fbers were researched comprehensively.UHMWPE extracted fbers obtained after SC-CO_(2) treatment display a higher molecular weight.More importantly,it is clear that the disentanglement of UHMWPE gel fbers gained by processing SC-CO_(2) has been signifcantly promoted compared with that without SC-CO_(2) treatment from dynamic thermomechanical and rheological results,which could also be demonstrated from the cross-sectional morphology of UHMWPE extracted fbers.Furthermore,the tensile strength of UHMWPE fbers prepared through SC-CO_(2) treating is able to attain 30.11 cN/dtex,increased by 10.3%in comparison to UHMWPE fbers gained without assistance of SC-CO_(2).Beyond that,the thermal behavior and crystallization performance of UHMWPE extracted fbers and drawn fbers acquired by way of SC-CO_(2) treatment have also been enhanced.