Crystallization behavior of a propylene-1-butene random copolymer in its α and γ modifications

A random propylene-based copolymer containing 1.0 mol% 1-butene as co-unit, synthesized with Ziegler-Natta catalyst and then fractionated to make the sample having a uniform in molecular microstructure, was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXD), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). In the DSC curves, one can see clearly the endothermic peaks corresponding to the melting of α-iPP crystals and a group of broad endothermic peaks associated to the melting of the γ-iPP crystals. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction results indicate that both the α and γ modifications can be formed in the copolymer in a wide temperature range. The γ fraction increases first with increasing the crystallization temperature at the expense of its α component, which has been explained according to crystalline structures of iPP in its α and γ forms, and then decreases with increasing crystallization temperature as the crystallization of iPP in its γ phase has been suppressed at high temperatures. The γ-iPP content in the copolymer reaches maximum at the temperature of 130 °C. The in situ X-ray diffraction characterization on the isothermal crystallization process at 130 °C indicates that, as long as the γ-iPP can be detected, it takes always ca. 25% of the overall crystallinity. This leads to the conclusion that α- and γ-iPP crystals grow simultaneously during the crystallization process. The fact that the α and γ phases cannot be distinguished by morphological observation leads to the conclusion that they may intermix within one spherulite.