Advances in Preparation and Applications of Disentangled Ultrahigh Molecular Weight Polyethylene

ABSTRACT

Ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) is an important engineering plastic with excellent impact resistance, self‐lubrication, low adhesion, good corrosion resistance, and biocompatibility. Commercially available UHMWPE is mainly produced through heterogeneous Ziegler–Natta catalytic systems consisting of titanium tetrachloride supported on magnesium chloride. The high entanglement density resulting from this system leads to extremely high melt viscosity, making conventional melt processing difficult. Recent research has shown that partially disentangled (low‐entanglement) UHMWPE (d‐UHMWPE) exhibits significantly improved processability and mechanical properties compared with traditional UHMWPE. This review first systematically reviews recent progress in catalysts for preparing nascent d‐UHMWPE from both homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis perspectives, with emphasis on analyzing the design strategies and disentanglement mechanisms of various catalytic systems. It then briefly introduces the characterization methods for d‐UHMWPE. Finally, the processing applications and future development directions of d‐UHMWPE are discussed.