Electrical properties and morphology of polyethylene produced with a novel catalyst

In this paper electrical properties of a novel linear low-density polyethylene synthesized with a catalyst, developed by our unique technique, were measured. It was found that this polyethylene had a higher volume resistivity, a higher breakdown strength and less spacer charge accumulation than conventional high-pressure low-density polyethylene and linear low-density polyethylene. We also measured electrical properties of blends of the new polyethylene and the conventional low-density polyethylene and found that the blends which contained up to 90 wt% of the low-density polyethylene had nearly the same value as the new polyethylene. The morphologies of the polyethylene were observed by using transmission electron microscope (TEM) and found that the blends kept the characteristics shown in the new polyethylene up to 90 wt% of the low-density polyethylene content. The relationship between morphology and electrical properties is discussed and comparison is made between the new polyethylene with those of the conventional low-density polyethylenes.