Characterization of polyamide 6 made by reactive extrusion. I. Synthesis and characterization of properties

Abstract The anionic polymerisation of ε‐caprolactam in a corotating, intermeshing twin‐screw extruder is discussed in terms of the materials formulation, extruder screw profile, and processing parameters such as temperature and screw speed. Using a variety of analytical characterization techniques, it is demonstrated that molecular mass, residual monomer content, and mechanical properties of the polyamide 6 are very sensitive to the reactive processing conditions employed. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.