Effect of X-ray irradiation on the structure, thermal and mechanical properties of polyester

¹ Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Taibah University, Al-Madina al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia
² Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
³ Clothes and Jewelry Design Department, College of Family Science, Taibah University, Al-Madina al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia
⁴ Physics Department, College of Science (Girls Branch), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

^a e-mail: samin273@gmail.com

Received: 29 January 2013
Revised: 25 April 2013
Accepted: 2 May 2013
Published online: 13 June 2013

Abstract

Samples from sheets of the polymeric material polyester have been exposed to X-rays from a 50 kV X-ray tube in the dose range 10–100 kGy. The resultant effect of X-rays has been investigated using different techniques such as X-ray diffraction XRD, thermogravimetric analysis TGA, differential thermal analysis DTA and stress-strain measurements. The results indicate that the polyester decomposes in one weight loss stage. Also, the X-ray irradiation in the dose range 30–100 kGy led to a more compact structure of polyester, which resulted in an improvement in its thermal stability. The variation of transition temperatures with the X-ray dose has been determined using DTA. The polyester thermograms were characterized by the appearance of an endothermic peak due to the melting of the crystalline phase. The melting temperature of the polymer Tm was investigated to probe the crystalline domains of the polymer. At the dose range 30–100 kGy, the defect generated destroys the crystalline structure, thus reducing the melting temperature. In addition, the stress-strain measurements indicate that the X-ray irradiation at the same dose range 30–100 kGy yields crosslinked polyester of high resilience that is suitable for manufacturing protective clothes that reduce heat stress.