Radiation Effects in Materials. Chapter 10: Radiation Effects in Polyamides

Abstract

Polyamides (PAs) are largely used either as engineering materials in virgin form or as composites and a component of polymer blends. Various processes have been used to modify some properties of polymers to improve their utility. For this purpose, radiation technologies present clear, one-step procedures and offer improvement to the performance of PA materials. Irradiation by accelerated electron beams, γ-rays, and accelerated protons is applied on PAs, particularly PA-6, as well as PA composites. Variations of important characteristics, such as chemical structure, supermolecular structure, mechanical properties, thermal resistance, water absorption, and other parameters, are analyzed involving results obtained by other authors. The application of irradiation on incompatible polymer blends involving PA is presented as well. The selection of radiation treatment of PAs has to be considered to obtain optimal results.