Magnesium acrylate induced interfacial compatibilization of EPDM/PP thermoplastic vulcanizate and shape memory behavior

The effect of magnesium acrylate (MgMA) on the interfacial compatibility and shape memory behavior of ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM)/polypropylene (PP) thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs) prepared through peroxide-induced dynamic vulcanization was investigated in this paper. MgMA could react with both PP and EPDM at their phase interface , which improved the EPDM/PP interfacial compatibilization . The PP continuous phase fixed the temporary shape and the crosslinked EPDM particles provided driving force for shape recovery. The improved phase interface played a significant role in the stress transmission between PP and EPDM phases. It is found that the shape fixity ratio (R f ) and the shape recovery ratio (R r ) of TPVs exceeded ∼90% and ∼92.5%, respectively. With the increase of MgMA content, the R f of TPVs increased firstly and then decreased, while the R r and recovery rate enhanced in the whole process. Furthermore, the mechanical properties of TPVs were also improved with the increasing MgMA content.