%0 Journal Article
%T Characterization of Shape Memory Polymer Estane by Means of Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analysis Technique
%A Rasa Kazakevi£¿i¨±t£¿-Makovska
%A Aycan £¿zlem £¿zarmut
%A Holger Steeb
%J Smart Materials Research
%D 2014
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2014/250258
%X Commercially available shape memory polymer (SMP) Estane (designation: ETE75DT3 NAT022) is investigated by means of dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) technique in torsion mode using the Modular Compact Rheometer MCR-301 (Anton Paar GmbH). Amplitude sweep tests have been run below and above the glass transition temperature to establish the linear viscoelastic range (LVR) in glassy and rubbery phase of this SMP for the correct physical interpretation of DMTA data. Temperature sweep tests were performed at various frequencies to study the influence of this parameter on values of the storage and loss moduli and the storage and loss compliances as well as the viscosities. These tests have been carried out in heating mode with different rates and at different strain amplitudes. The short- and long-term behavior of SMP Estane have been studied by frequency sweep tests performed at different temperatures and data have been transformed into time-domain properties by applying time-temperature superposition principles. All these DMTA data provide the experimental basis for the study of relaxation processes, property-structure relationships, and the shape memory effect in this little-known SMP. 1. Introduction Thermoresponsive shape memory polymers (SMPs) have the ability to recover a permanent shape from a programmed temporary shape upon heating. The characterization and modeling of this phenomenon, known as the shape memory effect (SME), require comprehensive experimental studies of mechanical, thermal, and functional properties of this class of smart materials [1¨C12]. In particular, the temperature- and time-dependent behavior of thermoresponsive SMPs are one of the most important indicators of their functional properties such as shape fixity, shape recovery, and stress recovery [2, 6, 10, 12]. Moreover, the shape recovery property is directly related to the temperature and frequency (time) dependency of elastic and viscoelastic material parameters, which must be determined using reliable measuring methods for every particular SMP. The viscoelastic behavior of polymers including SMPs may be studied in several experimental methods like steady-state deformation, stress relaxation, creep, or oscillatory dynamic deformation. The results of tests are quantified using material functions such as steady viscosity, relaxation modulus, creep compliance, and storage and loss modulus. Additional tests are needed to study the coupling between viscoelastic and thermal properties of polymers. The standard quasi-static tensile tests together with creep and stress
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/smr/2014/250258/