Molecular reorientation in polypropylene

The molecular reorientation occurring within deformation bands in one‐way drawn polypropylene films has been studied by optical microscopy. The deformation bands formed at the yield stress in tension tests on specimens cut at various angles to the initial drawing direction. It is shown that the principal axes of the refractive index ellipsoid in the deformation band coincide with the principal axes of the plastic strain ellipsoid, provided that the strains are referred to the initial isotropic state, i.e., prior to the initial drawing process. This result is similar to the results obtained previously for poly(ethylene terephthalate), but differes somewhat from the results obtained by other workers for poly(vinyl chloride). A possible reason for these differences is discussed.