EVALUATION OF POLYMER DEGRADATION USING CHEMILUMINESCENCE IMAGING

THE AGING OF POLYMERS LEADS SLOWLY BUT INEXTRICABLY TO CHANGES IN THEIR CHEMICAL AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES. BRITTLENESS CAN ARISE BY SEVERAL AGING MECHANISMS AND OFTEN RESULTS IN EVENTUAL FORMATION OF CRACKS AND OTHER IMPERFECTIONS. ALL ORGANIC MATERIALS UNDERGO SLOW OXIDATION CALLED AUTOXIDATION, WHICH RESULTS IN CHEMILUMINESCENCE, THE SPONTANEOUS FORMATION OF VERY WEAK PHOTON EMISSION. HOWEVER, IT IS POSTULATED THAT POLYMER CRACKS AND OTHER DEFECTS WILL EMIT LIGHT AT A FASTER RATE THAN THE BULK POLYMER. THE DEFECTS WILL THUS BE DETECTABLE USING CHEMILUMINESCENCE IMAGING. THE DETECTION OF VERY WEAK IMAGES WILL REQUIRE AN IMAGE DETECTION SYSTEM OPERATING IN A POSITION-SENSITIVE PHOTON-COUNTING MODE. THE CHEMILUMINESCENCE SIGNAL CAN THEN BE INTEGRATED OVER APPROPRIATE TIME PERIODS AND THE IMAGE DATA CAN BE MANIPULATED USING IMAGE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES. THIS RESEARCH WILL EVALUATE THE FEASIBILITY OF USING CHEMILUMINESCENCE IMAGING FOR THE EVALUATION OF POLYMER DEGRADATION DUE TO AGING.