Effect of compressed CO2 on crystallization and melting behavior of isotactic polypropylene

Compressed gases such as CO2 above their critical temperatures provide a highly tunable technique that has been shown to induce changes in phase behavior, crystallization kinetics and morphology of the polymers. Gas induced plasticization of the polymer matrix has been studied in a large number of polymers such as polystyrene, and poly(ethylene terephathalate). The knowledge of polymer–gas interactions is fundamental to the study of phenomena such as solubility and diffusivity of gases in polymers, dilation of polymers and in the development of applications such as foams and barrier materials.