Ternary blends of poly(amide‐6)/polycarbonate/poly(ε‐caprolactone)

Blends of poly(amide‐6) (PA) and poly(ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) prepared by solution casting and screw extrusion have been investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). From the measured melting point (T_m) of the solution‐cast PA/PCL blends, a T_m depression of the PA was observed for the investigated compositions. No T_m depression was found for the extruded PA/PCL blends, however. In the SEM study of the morphology of the solution‐cast PA/PCL blends, phase separation was observed between the PA phase and the PCL phase for all blend compositions. For the extruded PA/PCL blends, however, more pronounced phase separation was observed for all blend compositions. Ternary blends of PA, PCL, and bisphenol‐A polycarbonate (PC) have also been prepared by screw extrusion. From the study of morphology and extrudate swell of the PA/PC binary blends and the extruded PA/PC/PCL ternary blends, it appears that PCL could be used as a compatibilizer for the extruded PA/PC/PCL blends. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.