The synergistic effect of an organic phosphate salt nucleating agent and CaCO3 in isotactic polypropylene.

In this work, isotactic polypropylene (iPP) was modified with an organic phosphate salt nucleating agent LPN-9081 and CaCO3. The synergistic effect of LNP-9801 and CaCO3 in iPP was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electronic microscope (SEM), and mechanical property tests. The DSC results showed that the peak crystallization temperature (Tc) of modified iPP was increased by about 10 °C when compared to that of pure iPP, this indicates that LNP-9801 and CaCO3 increased the crystallization rate of iPP. The mechanical property tests demonstrated significant improvements in bending modulus and impact strength of modified iPP (impact strength increased by 33.9%, flexural modulus increased by 100.1%), which achieved an optimal balance of stiffness and toughness. Furthermore, the SEM results indicated that LPN-9081 contributed to the good dispersion of CaCO3 in the iPP matrix. All of the above results show that organic phosphate salt nucleating agent LPN-9081 and CaCO3 had good synergistic effects in iPP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]