Morphology and Mechanical Performance of Polysulfone Modified by a Glass Fiber Reinforced Liquid‐Crystalline Polymer

Abstract

Hybrid composites based on polysulfone of bisphenol A (PSF) and glass fiber (GF) reinforced copolyester liquid‐crystalline polymer (gLCP) were obtained by injection molding. The viscosity of the 10% and 20% gLCP composites was lower than that of pure PSF. The Young's modulus followed the direct rule of mixtures. This was due to the counteracting effects of the decreasing orientation of the liquid‐crystalline polymer (LCP) in the skin at increasing gLCP contents on the one hand; and either the increasing skin thickness in the PSF‐rich composites or the lower orientation of the core in the PSF‐poor composites on the other. The composites with 10–20% gLCP showed the best mechanical performance, because, besides their enhanced processability, they showed a tensile strength similar to that of PSF and much larger notched impact strength.

Keywords:

• Liquid‐crystalline polymer (LCP)
• Polysulfone
• Glass fiber
• Mechanical properties
• Morphology

Acknowledgments

The financial support of the University of the Basque Country (Project No. 9/UPV 00203.215‐13540/2001) is gratefully acknowledged. M. García acknowledges the Spanish “Ministerio de Educación y Cultura” for the award of a grant.