title: Effects of temperature, packaging and electron beam irradiation processing conditions on the property behaviour of Poly (ether-block-amide) blends.
abstract: The radiation stability of Poly (ether-block-amide) (PEBA) blended with a multifunctional phenolic antioxidant and a hindered amide light stabiliser was examined under various temperatures, packaging and electron beam processing conditions. FTIR revealed that there were slight alterations to the PEBA before irradiation; however, these became more pronounced following irradiation. The effect of varying the temperature, packaging and processing conditions on the resultant PEBA properties was apparent. For example, rheology demonstrated that the structural properties could be enhanced by manipulating the aforementioned criteria. Mechanical testing exhibited less radiation resistance when the PEBA samples were vacuum packed and exposed to irradiation. MFI and AFM confirmed that the melting strength and surface topography could be reduced/increased depending on the conditions employed. From this study it was concluded that virgin PEBA submerged in dry ice with non-vacuum packaging during the irradiation process, provided excellent radiation resistance (20.9% improvement) in contrast to the traditional method.
authors.affiliation: Materials Research Institute, Athlone Institute of Technology, Dublin Road, Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland. Electronic address: kmurray@research.ait.ie.
authors.forename: Kieran A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Murray
authors.affiliation: Materials Research Institute, Athlone Institute of Technology, Dublin Road, Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland. Electronic address: jkennedy@ait.ie.
authors.forename: James E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.affiliation: Synergy Health, IDA Business & Technology Park, Sragh, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland. Electronic address: Brian.Mcevoy@synergyhealthplc.com.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: McEvoy
authors.affiliation: Synergy Health, IDA Business & Technology Park, Sragh, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland. Electronic address: Olivier.Vrain@synergyhealthplc.com.
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Vrain
authors.affiliation: Synergy Health, IDA Business & Technology Park, Sragh, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland. Electronic address: Damien.Ryan@synergyhealthplc.com.
authors.forename: Damien
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ryan
authors.affiliation: Synergy Health, IDA Business & Technology Park, Sragh, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland. Electronic address: Richard.Cowman@synergyhealthplc.com.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cowman
authors.affiliation: Materials Research Institute, Athlone Institute of Technology, Dublin Road, Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland. Electronic address: chigginbotham@ait.ie.
authors.forename: Clement L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Higginbotham
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000737:chemistry; D002152:Calorimetry, Differential Scanning; D004349:Drug Packaging / Q000379:methods*; D004583:Electrons; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D015394:Molecular Structure; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry*; D059808:Polyphenols / Q000737:chemistry; D011827:Radiation; D012212:Rheology; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D011091:Polyesters; D059808:Polyphenols
keywords: Crosslinking and chain scission; Electron beam irradiation; Mechanical, thermal, structural and surface properties; Packaging and processing conditions; Poly (ether-block-amide); Stabilisers