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Recent Progress of Post-reactor and Reactor-made Polypropylene-based Thermoplastic Elastomers

Virendrakumar Gupta, Sanket Shah, Harshad R. Patil

Abstract


The global market for thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) is growing rapidly owing to the rising demand from the packaging, automotive, healthcare, construction, electrical, electronics and other sectors. Significant progress has been made in the last few decades in the development of different TPE. Polypropylene being low-cost, corrosion resistance, better mechanical properties and readilyavailable, has attracted several researchers to develop polypropylene based thermoplastic elastomers (PP-TPE). This review focuses on recent advancements in PP-TPE products, which include high impact PP, heterophasic PP, thermoplastic-elastomer blends and functionalized PP. Furthermore, processes for preparing these polymers, ranging from the post-reactor blending of polyolefin to the reactor (insitu) granule technology (RGT) and the emerging energy- saving dual reactor process using hybrid catalyst, are also explained. The review also covers reactor-made PP-TPE alloys which can be used as an alternative to advanced engineering thermoplastics (ETP) for various applications. StructureProperty-Performance correlation for various PP-TPE, produced from different co-monomers, elastomers and functional groups using advanced analytical tools is also elaborated. In view of overcoming the limitations of post-reactor blended polymers, scientists and researchers are continuously investigating new catalysts and processes to develop reactor-based PP-TPE. This review will benefit the scientific community to bring more strategies for the development of innovative polypropylene-based elastomeric products

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