STRUCTURE-PROPERTY RELATIONSHIP OF THERMOPLASTIC ELASTOMERS——BLOCK COPOLYMERS

Block copolymers are marked by alternation of hard blocks and soft blocks, whereby the hard blocks are believed to form crystalline domains in non-crystalline matrix formed by aggregation of the soft blocks and a fraction of the hard blocks escaping crystallization. On the basis of this two-phase model a number of studies has been made varying the nature and length of hard and soft blocks. After reviewing some papers published in this field, it may be concluded that the system in which properties of thermoplastic elastomers are exhibited can be generally divided into three catalogues, they are polyurethane, polyether-ester, polyesteramide elastomers. Structure-property relationship of these thermoplastic elastomers are given in this paper.