POLYMER PHYSICS AND CHARACTERIZATION BY MECHANICAL MEASUREMENTS

The characterization and the study of the physical properties of polymeric materials need the use of many different experimental techniques. Among them, the mechanical behavior can be considered as a probe able to characterize the molecular mobility if suitable theoretical approaches can relate the macroscopic behavior to microscopic events. Many works have been done using two different types of tests: (i) tests involving stress large enough to induce non‐linear behavior (plastic flow…), (ii) mechanical spectrometry technique or microcreep which involve stress lower than 105 Pa. An attempt have been done to give a unitary description of the behaviors observed under these two conditions. The case of multiphase polymer materials is obviously more difficult, but because the mechanical properties are mainly sensitive on one hand to the behavior of each phase and on the other hand to their geometrical and topological arrangements, it is possible, from mechanical tests, to obtain information about these both aspects. Copyright © 1990 Hüthig & Wepf Verlag