MORPHOLOGY OF HIGHLY TEXTURED HIGH-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) specimens were subjected to high orientation producing deformations below the melting point by using either a rolling mill or a channel die. After appropriate annealing protocols, the crystallographic and morphological textures were examined by using wide-angle X-ray diffraction pole figures, two-dimensional small-angle X-ray scattering and transmission electron microscopy. Although the two deformation patterns resulted in very similar crystallographic textures, the details of the morphological arrangements of crystalline lamellae were different. Quantitative considerations of the 2-D SAXS patterns led to the conclusion that lamellae that are inclined to the macroscopic orientation direction reflect a shear process within the individual lamellae rather than a rigid rotation inside the surrounding amorphous material. © 1990, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.