Journal of Aeronautical Materials (Dec 2016)

Damage Effects of Electron Irradiation with Different Energy on Mechanical Properties of Polyethylene Heat-shrinkable Sleeves

  • LIU Yuming,
  • ZHAO Chunqing,
  • LI Man,
  • ZHANG Kai,
  • SHEN Zicai

DOI
https://doi.org/10.11868/j.issn.1005-5053.2016.6.013
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 36, no. 6
pp. 79 – 85

Abstract

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Damage effects of electron irradiation with different energy on mechanical properties of polyethylene heat-shrinkable sleeves were studied by irradiating the sleeves with 45 keV, 1 MeV and 2 MeV electrons respectively. The mechanical property degradations of the sleeves before and after radiations were present. X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to analyze the element contents, the morphologies and the molecular structures of the samples to study the damage mechanism of the sleeves. A degradation model for the changes of the mechanical properties of the sleeves in electron radiation environment was proposed. It is shown that the increase of irradiation degradation of the polyethylene causes the sleeves' mechanical properties. For the penetration depth of different energy electrons in polyethylene is different, only a shallow layer the sleeves is affected by 45 keV energy electrons, while 1 MeV and 2 MeV energy electrons are penetrated the sleeves and cause the sleeves great damage. The mechanical properties of the sleeves are decreased by about 30% to 40% after 45 keV energy electron irradiation, and decreased by about 100% after 1 MeV and 2 MeV energy electron irradiation.

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