Multilayered polyolefin-based films having a layer comprising a crystalline block copolymer composite or a block copolymer composite resin

• US 10,770,609 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2018
• Issued: 09/08/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dow Global Technologies LLC (Dow, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dow Global Technologies LLC (Dow, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bonekamp, Jeffrey E., Hu, Yushan, Nickel, Nichole E., Chu, Lih-Long, Naumovitz, John A., Hofius, Mark G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Samir
• Application Number:
  US16/205,472
• Publication Number:
  US 20190123226A1
• Time in Patent Office: 648 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/003 characterised by the choice of material
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/26 by depositing flowable material on a rotating drum
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 41/32 Making multilayered or multicoloured articles
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2023/06 PE, i.e. polyethylene
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2023/0625 LLDPE, i.e. linear low density polyethylene
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2009/00 Layered products
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2270/00 Resin or rubber layer containing a blend of at least two different polymers
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2323/04 Polyethylene
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2457/12 Photovoltaic modules
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/08 of synthetic resin
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/32 comprising polyolefins comprising vinyl (co)polymers or acrylic (co)polymers B32B27/30
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 37/185 Laminating sheets, panels or inserts between two discrete plastic layers
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2203/204 use in solar cells
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/025 containing two or more polymers of the same hierarchy C08L, and differing only in parameters such as density, comonomer content, molecular weight, structure
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/03 containing three or more polymers in a blend
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/035 containing four or more polymers in a blend
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 2205/12 containing additives being liquid crystalline or anisotropic in the melt
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 53/00 Compositions of block copolymers containing at least one sequence of a polymer obtained by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds; Compositions of derivatives of such polymers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0481 characterised by the composition of the encapsulation material
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/049 Protective back sheets
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/18 : Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment of these devices or of parts thereof
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/50 : Photovoltaic [PV] energy

Abstract

Disclosed are multilayer film structures including a layer (B) that includes a crystalline block copolymer composite (CBC) or a specified block copolymer composite (BC), including i) an ethylene polymer (EP) including at least 80 mol % polymerized ethylene; ii) an alpha-olefin-based crystalline polymer (CAOP) and iii) a block copolymer including (a) an ethylene polymer block including at least 80 mol % polymerized ethylene and (b) a crystalline alpha-olefin block (CAOB); and a layer C that includes a polyolefin having at least one melting peak greater than 125 C, the top facial surface of layer C in adhering contact with the bottom facial surface of layer B. Such multilayer film structure preferably includes (A) a seal layer A having a bottom facial surface in adhering contact with the top facial surface of layer B. Such films are suited for use in electronic device (ED) modules including an electronic device such as a PV cell.

Claims

1. A multilayer film structure comprising:

a tie Layer B and a bottom Layer C;

B. the tie layer B has a top facial surface and a bottom facial surface;

C. the bottom layer C comprises a propylene-based polymer having at least one melting peak greater than 125 C and has a top facial surface and a bottom facial surface, and the top facial surface of Layer C is in adhering contact with the bottom facial surface of Layer B;

wherein the Layer B consists of (1) a block composite resin (BC), (2) an optional colorant, (3) an optional stabilizer, and (4) an optional antioxidant, the BC made from monomers consisting of propylene and ethylene, and the BC has

i) an ethylene-propylene copolymer (EP) comprising at least 80 mol % polymerized ethylene;

ii) a crystalline propylene-based polymer (CPP); and

iii) a diblock copolymer comprising (a) an ethylene-propylene block comprising at least 80 mol % polymerized ethylene and (b) a crystalline propylene block.

2. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the CPP comprises greater than 90 mol % polymerized propylene.

3. The multilayer film structure of claim 2 wherein the block composite resin in Layer B has two peak melting temperatures and a first peak melting temperature greater than 120°

C.

4. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the crystalline propylene block (iii)(b) of the diblock copolymer is the same composition as the crystalline propylene-based polymer (CPP) of the block composite resin.

5. The multilayer film structure of claim 4 wherein the ethylene-propylene block (iii)(a) of the diblock copolymer is the same composition as the EP copolymer of the block composite resin.

6. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the Layer B block composite resin has an ethylene-propylene block amount in the range of from 30 to 70 weight % based on total weight of the diblock copolymer (iii).

7. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the block composite resin has a crystalline block composite index (CBCI) from 0.3 to 0.8.

8. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the tie Layer B is a blend with greater than 40 weight percent of the block composite resin.

9. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 comprising:

(A) a seal layer A having a top facial surface and a bottom facial surface, the bottom facial surface of layer a in adhering contact with the top facial surface of layer B.

10. The multilayer film structure of claim 9 wherein the layer A comprises a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE).

11. The multilayer film structure of claim 10 wherein the layer A comprises a blend formulation of a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) comprising a polar ethylene copolymer in an amount from 10 weight % to 45 weight %.

12. The multilayer film structure of claim 9 wherein the layer A comprises a block composite resin and the layer A composition is different from the layer B composition.

13. The multilayer film structure of claim 9 wherein Layer A is from greater than 0 to 200 micrometer (μ

m) in thickness;

Layer B is from 25 to 100 μ

m in thickness; and

Layer C is from 150 to 350 μ

m in thickness.

14. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the block composite resin has a density from 0.905 g/cc to 0.912 g/cc.

15. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 comprising

a top seal Layer A comprising a blend formulation of a linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) comprising a polar ethylene copolymer in an amount from 10 weight % to 45 weight %;

the bottom Layer C comprising the propylene-based polymer; and

the Layer B between Layer A and Layer C, the block composite resin with

i) an ethylene-propylene copolymer (EP) comprising at least 93 mol % polymerized ethylene;

ii) the crystalline propylene-based polymer; and

iii) a diblock copolymer comprising (a) an ethylene-propylene block comprising at least 93 mol % polymerized ethylene and (b) a crystalline propylene block.

16. An electronic device (ED) module comprising an electronic device and a multilayer film structure according to claim 1.

17. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the Layer (B) consists of (1) the BC, (2) the colorant, (3) the stabilizer that is a UV stabilizer, and (4) the antioxidant.

18. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the Layer (B) consists of (1) the BC, (2) the colorant, and (3) the stabilizer that is a UV stabilizer.

19. The multilayer film structure of claim 1 wherein the Layer (B) consists of (1) the BC, and (2) the colorant.