Damage of Semicrystalline Polyamide 6 Assessed by 3D X-Ray Tomography: From Microstructural Evolution to Constitutive Modeling

In this study an attempt is made to link the damage and microstructural evolution of semicrystalline polymers, in particular polyamide 6, to the macroscopic material behavior during tensile and creep tests. Tensile specimens, removed before failure were seen to have undergone striction. They were examined using synchrotron radiation tomography. These samples showed elongated axisymmetric columns of voids separated by thin ligaments of material. These observations were confirmed and refined through a cryofractography experiment of a different tensile sample, stopped before failure. An attempt was made to obtain quantitative data about void volume fraction and morphology through image analysis. (C) 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 1516-1525, 2010