Effect of gama radiation on mechanical properties and physical structure of polyethylene and polypropylen with filler material

In this study, changes at mechanical properties of standard test specimens produced of powder coating reinforced thermoplastics (polyethylene and polypropylene) due to gamma radiation are examined. These specimens whose matrix materials are polyethylene and polypropylene and include an amount of 5%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% of electrostatic powder coating waste were exposed to 44 kGry gamma-radiation for twenty four hours. Mechanical tests applied to the specimens after radiation to obtain how tensile strengths, three-point bend strengths, and impact strengths of the samples are changed. The results of these were compared with the results of test which obtained from notgamma radiated samples to see effects of gamma radiation on mechanical characteristic of samples.Furthermore, to examine the effects of gamma radiation on physical connection mechanism between matrix material and filling material, section images of the sample under the electron microscope were taken and the results were compared to the results of mechanical tests applied to the samples that were not gamma-radiated. In this way, the effects of gamma radiation on mechanical and physical properties of polypropylene and polyethylene as the powder coating waste filling materials were determined.