Poly(ethylene 2,5-furandicarboxylate) pole figures to determine the microstructural scheme upon uniaxial stretching: Link between orientation and crystallisation

The emergent biobased polymer poly (ethylene 2,5-furandicarboxylate), PEF, has been studied through an innovative approach based on pole figures and orientation factor calculation. PEF uniaxial stretching was performed with different mechanical conditions (different equivalent strain rates), up to several levels of strain and while considering different post-stretching cooling conditions (interrupted, unloaded and ruptured samples). Samples were stretched and interrupted before and after the Natural Draw Ratio (NDR), the deformation for which the material starts strain-hardening. When PEF strain-hardens, it reveals both an increase of the crystalline orientation and crystallinity ratio with the deformation imposed. Unloading the material at temperature tends to decrease partially crystalline orientation, especially regarding the aliphatic part of the chains. Moreover, stretching PEF up to high strains, superior to the NDR, leads to crystal fragmentation. After all, all experimental results were compared to a texture model. It appears that a texture can be developed upon stretching that is close to a fibre texture, as the furan cycles tend to be parallel to the specimen plane.