POLYCARBONATE COMPOSITIONS

Abstract

The present invention relates to polycarbonate compositions and molded articles made therefrom. The polycarbonate composition comprises: A) 70-95 wt.% of aromatic polycarbonate, B) 4-26 wt.% of mineral fdler, C) 0.1- 4 wt.% of ester-modified wax, D) 0.1-0.6 wt.% of a mold release agent, E) 0.05-0.3 wt.% of antioxidant, F) 0 - 0.3 wt.% ofneutralizer, and G) 0-2 wt.% of coloring agent, wherein the amount of each component is based on the total weight of the polycarbonate composition. The molded articles made from the polycarbonate composition according to this invention show enhanced impact strength, tensile elongation at break and surface gloss.

Claims

1-13. (canceled)

14. A polycarbonate composition comprising the following components: A) 70-95 wt.% of aromatic polycarbonate, B) 4-26 wt.% of mineral filler, C) 0.1- 4 wt.% of ester-modified wax, D) 0.1-0.6 wt.% of mold release agent, E) 0.05-0.3 wt.% of antioxidant, F) 0 - 0.3 wt.% of neutralizer, and G) 0-2 wt.% of coloring agent, wherein the amount of each component is based on the total weight of the polycarbonate composition, and the ester-modified wax has the following formula (W1): ##STR00017## wherein R is hydrogen or a C.sub.1— to C.sub.5-alkyl group, n represents an integer of 20 to 40, m represents an integer of 1 to 5, and X and Y, independently of one another, represent an integer of 3 to 1000.

15. The polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 14, wherein the mineral filler is selected from the group consisting of kaolin, talc, mica, wollastonite, fused silica, and combinations thereof.

16. The polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 14, wherein in formula (W1), R is hydrogen or a methyl group, n represents an integer of 20 to 40, m represents 1.

17. The polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 14, wherein the neutralizer is selected from citric acid or phosphorous acid.

18. The polycarbonate composition according to claim 14 consisting of A) 70-95 wt.% of aromatic polycarbonate, B) 4-26 wt.% of mineral filler, C) 0.1- 4 wt.% of ester-modified wax, D) 0.1-0.6 wt.% of mold release agent, and E) 0.05-0.3 wt.% of antioxidant, F) 0- 0.3 wt.% of neutralizer, and G) 0-2 wt.% of coloring agent, wherein the amount of each component is based on the total weight of the polycarbonate composition, and the ester-modified wax has the following formula (W1): ##STR00018## wherein R is hydrogen or a C.sub.1—to C.sub.5-alkyl group, n represents an integer of 20 to 40, m represents an integer of 1 to 5, and X and Y, independently of one another, represent an integer of 3 to 1000.

19. The polycarbonate composition according to claim 14, wherein X and Y, independently of one another, represent an integer of 3 to 200.

20. A process for preparing the polycarbonate composition according to claim 14, comprising blending components A, B, C, D, E, and optionally components F and G.

21. The process as claimed in claim 20, wherein blending comprises: premixing components D-E and optionally components F and G to obtain a premix, and blending the premix with components A-C to obtain a mixture.

22. The process for preparing a polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 21, further comprising granulating the mixture to obtain granules.

23. A molded article made from the polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 14.

24. A molded article according to claim 23, wherein the article is a housing or part of a housing of an electric device, of an electronic device, of a consumer appliance, or an automobile part.

25. A method for preparing the molded article according to claim 23 comprising injection moulding, extrusion moulding, blowing moulding or thermoforming the polycarbonate composition.

26. An electronic device with a housing or a part of a housing prepared with the polycarbonate composition as claimed in claim 14.

Description

EXAMPLES

[0153] With reference to the examples below, the present invention will be described in detail. These examples are only for the purpose of illustration, instead of intending to limit the scope of the present invention.

Raw Materials

[0154] In Table 1, the raw materials used in the comparative examples and inventive examples are listed.

[0155] In the comparative examples (“CE”) and inventive examples (“IE”), unless particularly indicated, the amount in percent of each component refers to the weight percent of the component relative to the resulting polycarbonate composition, with the total weight of the polycarbonate composition as being 100 wt.%.

Preparation of Molded Articles With Polycarbonate Compositions

[0156] In the following examples, the molded articles of a polycarbonate composition in the CEs and IEs listed in Tables 2-8 were prepared according to the following process: [0157] 1) premixing components D-G with a high-speed mixer to obtain a premix, the high-speed mixer used in CEs and IEs was Reimelt Henschel mixer with the model No. FML40. [0158] 2) blending the premix with component A-C in a twin-screw extruder to obtain a mixture and such mixture was granulated by extrusion to obtain granules, the twin-screw extruder used in the CEs and IEs was Coperion ZSK26. [0159] 3) injection moulding the granules into a molded article, the injection moulding machine used in CEs and IEs was Arburg 370S 700-170 S/N 215673, during preparing the testing samples with the polycarbonate composition, the melting temperature was 300° C., the mold temperature was 80° C., and the injection pressure was 1000 bar.

Testing Methods

[0160] The following properties were characterized. [0161] 1. MVR indicates the flowability property of the polycarbonate composition obtained and was measured under the conditions 260° C./5 kg according to ISO 1133-1:2011. [0162] 2. iMVR indicates the melt volume flow rate of the polycarbonate composition obtained and was measured by holding a testing sample under the condition of 260° C./5 kg for 15 minutes. [0163] 3. ΔMVR indicates thermal stability of the polycarbonate composition obtained and was calculated with the formula of (iMVR-MVR)/MVR*100%. [0164] 4. Tensile stress at break was measured according to ISO 527-2:2012. [0165] 5. Izod notched impact strength and unnotched impact strength were measured at the temperature of 23° C. according to ISO180/A:2000.

[0166] The testing samples for Izod notched impact strength were prepared with the injection molding process as mentioned above and had a dimension of 80 mm × 10 mm × 4 mm. The radius of notch was 0.25 mm. 10 testing samples were tested under each experimental condition and their average value was used as the impact strength value in tables in this application. The impact strength values were shown with the break type (C or P) in Tables. C stands for complete break and indicates the brittle behavior. P stands for partial break and indicates the partially ductile behavior. NB represents non-break, indicating fully ductile behavior.

[0167] 6. Gloss indicates the degree to which the surface of an article is close to a mirror surface. The higher the numerical value, the closer the smoothness of the object surface is to the mirror surface.

[0168] Gloss was evaluated with BYK Hazegloss Meter according to ASTM D523-2014, wherein 20 and 60 degree angles were selected for illumination and detection signal. The unit of gloss is GU. The thickness of the testing samples is represented by h, and in the present application, it was 2 mm in the experiments.

[0169] 7. Vicat softening temperature indicates the temperature at which a flat-ended needle penetrates the testing samples to the depth of 1 mm under a specific load. The temperature reflects the point of softening to be expected when a material is used in an elevated temperature application. A testing sample is placed in the testing apparatus so that the penetrating needle rests on its surface at least 1 mm from the edge. In comparative examples and inventive examples of this application, a load of 50 N was applied to the testing samples. The testing samples were then lowered into an oil bath at 23° C. The bath was heated at a rate of 120° C. per hour until the needle penetrates 1 mm. In this application, Vicat soft temperature was measured in accordance with ISO 306: 2013.

TABLE-US-00001 Raw material used in comparative examples and inventive examples Component Product Name Description Supplier A-1 Polycarbonate based on bisphenol A with a weight-average molecular weight Mw of 24,500 g/mol Covestro Polymers (China) Company Limited A-2 Polycarbonate based on bisphenol A with a weight-average molecular weight Mw of 20,500 g/mol B-1 PolyfilⓇHG90 Kaolin (Hydrous Aluminium Silicate) KaMin LLC B-2 HTP Ultra 5C Talc IMI Fabi S.p.A. B-3 Wollastonite 4W 10992 Wollastonite Imerys Talc America, Inc. B-4 Mica W-600 Mica Lingshou Huajin Mica Co., LTD B-5 AMOSIL FW600 Fused silica Quarzwerke GmbH C Ceralene 694 Polyolefin grafted with ester groups EUROCERAS Sp. zo.o. ElvaloyⓇ AC1820 Ethylene-methyl acrylate copolymer (EMA) with methyl acrylate content 20 wt.% and melt flow index 8 g/(10 min) (testing conditions 190° C., 2.16 kg, ISO 1133-1:2011) Dupont Impact modifier ABS HRG P60 ABS HRG (high rubber graft) with core-shell structure INEOS Styrolution Group GmbH D PETS Pentaerythritol tetrastearate as mold release agent Guangzhou Nuochi E Irganox B 900 Antioxidant Ciba Specialty Chemicals F Citric acid Neutralizer Univar China Ltd. G BP800 Carbon black as coloring agent Cabot (China) Ltd.

m, n, X and Y in the ester-modified wax according to formula (W1), which was used as component C, were determined via FTIR-spectroscopy, .sup.1H NMR-spectroscopy, GPC and GCMS as follows:

[0170] i) The FTIR spectrum of a sample was obtained at room temperature according to JY/T 001-1996. From the IR spectrum, the presence of polymethyl acrylate was indicated through the peaks at 1739 cm.sup.-1, 1265 cm.sup.-1, 1196 cm.sup.-1, 1164 cm.sup.-1, and 827 cm.sup.-1, the presence of long chain alkanes (—CH.sub.2—).sub.m was indicated through the peaks at 1465 cm.sup.-1 and 719 cm.sup.-1.

[0171] ii) The .sup.1H NMR spectrum of the sample was obtained at room temperature, with chloroform-d (CDCl.sub.3) as the solvent used. In the .sup.1H NMR spectrum, the presence of methyl group (which is connected to O atom in polyacrylate) was indicated through the peak at 3.66 ppm, the presence of end groups (—CH.sub.3) (which is connected to C atom in long chain alkanes) was indicated through the peak at 0.9 ppm. The mole ratio of —OCH.sub.3 and —CH.sub.2CH.sub.3 was obtained from the 1H NMR spectrum. The mole ratio of —OCH.sub.3 and —CH.sub.2CH.sub.3 was 1:1 for the wax used.

[0172] iv) The GCMS spectrum of the sample was obtained according to the equipment standard of Agilent: GC-7890A MS-5975c-2012, with chloroform (CHCl.sub.3) as the solvent used. The numbers and type of monomer units were determined based on the mass spectrometry data obtained.

[0173] v) With Py-GCMS and manual pyrolysis GC-MS of the sample, the synthetic monomers could be determined and their total mass ratio was determined according to the area normalization method.

[0174] Element information was measured with an organic element analyzer PE SERIES II 2400 according to the general rule of element analyzer method: JY/T 017-1996. By this, the content of N, C and H could be determined.

[0175] The structural formula of the wax was formula W1, in which n represented an integer of 20 to 40, m represented an integer of 1 to 5, X and Y were in a range of 3-200.

TABLE-US-00002 Polycarbonate Composition CE-1 IE-1 IE-2 IE-3 IE-4 IE-5 IE-6 IE-7 IE-8 CE-2 Component A-1 (PC) 51.0 51.0 51.0 50.8 50.6 50.3 50.0 49.8 49.3 49.8 Component A-2 (PC) 33.0 32.8 32.6 32.6 32.4 32.2 32.0 31.7 31.7 31.7 Component B-1 (kaolin) 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 0.2 0.4 0.6 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 ElvaloyⓇ AC1820 2.5 Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (Citric acid) Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/(10 min) 110 94.2 69.7 45.1 32.2 28.4 31.0 34.7 39.8 33.0 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/(10 min) 138 110 77.0 53.0 37.6 29.5 30.6 33.7 40.0 33.6 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 25 17 10 18 17 4 -1 -3 1 2 Tensile stress at break 50 mm/min MPa 41.9 54.0 56.1 49.2 48.7 47.1 50.9 48.5 47.7 50.7 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 1.3 2.0 8.2 15 27 1.1×10.sup.2 1.1×10.sup.2 1.0×10.sup.2 1.0×10.sup.2 8.4 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 2.8C 3.3C 4.2C 5.7C 8.0C 33P 42P 47P 54P 6.1C Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 49C 55C 76C 1.4×10.sup.2C 2.0×10.sup.2P /NB NB NB NB NB 56C Gloss h=2 mm, 20° GU 36.1 42.3 46.5 46.6 46.9 64.3 70.3 74.6 81.1 h=2 mm, 60° GU 74.5 80.1 82.0 82.0 82.5 91.9 93.9 95.5 96.7

[0176] In CE-1, no ester-modified wax was added, and correspondingly the ΔMVR of the testing samples in CE-1 was relatively high, i.e. 25%, which indicated that during blending of the components to prepare polycarbonate compositions, a serious degradation of polycarbonate happened, and this led to low impact strength of polycarbonate compositions.

[0177] In IE-1 to IE-8, the ester-modified wax was introduced, and the ΔMVR of the testing samples decreased to -3∼18%. In IE-5 to IE-8, the decrease was much more substantially. This means that the addition of the ester-modified wax decreased the degradation of polycarbonate during the preparation of the polycarbonate compositions.

[0178] Meanwhile, when the content of the ester-modified wax increased from 0.2 wt.% to 3.0 wt.% in the IE-1 to IE-8, the tensile strain at break of the testing samples increased from 2% to 100 %, with a maximum value of about 90 times of that in CE-1.

[0179] Further, as shown in IE-1 to IE-8, with the introduction of the ester-modified wax into the polycarbonate compositions, both the Izod notched impact strength and Izod unnotched impact strength were greatly improved. In IE-8, the Izod notched impact strength of the testing samples was about 20 times of that in CE-1.

[0180] In CE-2, Elvaloy® AC1820 was added. As compared with IE-7, the tensile strain at break, impact strength of the sample obtained in CE-2 were much lower.

[0181] Table 2 also shows that the introduction of the ester-modified wax into the polycarbonate compositions had positive influence on the surface gloss of the testing samples. The surface gloss in inventive examples (IE-1 to IE-8) was improved monotonously.

TABLE-US-00003 Composition CE-3 IE-9 IE-10 IE-11 IE-12 CE-4 Component A-1 (PC) 51.0 51.0 50.8 50.6 49.9 50.6 Component A-2 (PC) 32.9 32.5 32.5 32.3 32.0 32.3 Component B-2 (talc) 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 0.4 0.6 1.0 2.0 Elvaloy® AC1820 1.0 Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (citric acid) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10min 28.3 24.2 24.5 27.2 38.0 20.4 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10min 35.2 25.7 25.2 27.3 39.9 22.1 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 24.4 6.2 2.9 0.4 5.0 10 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 8.1 16 22 63 65 8.4 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 5.3C 8.0C 9.2C 15C 23P 7.2C Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 89C 1.6×10.sup.2P 1.9×10.sup.2P NB NB 1.0x10.sup.2C Gloss h=2 mm, 20° GU 9.3 10.5 11.3 11.0 22.7 h=2 mm, 60° GU 32.6 36.5 42.8 49.8 69.8

[0182] The mineral filler used in examples listed in Table 3 was talc.

[0183] As shown in Table 3, the testing samples in CE-3 had higher ΔMVR values as compared with that in IE-9 to IE-12. It indicates a much more serious degradation of polycarbonate happened in CE-3 than that in IE-9 to IE-12 during the preparation of the polycarbonate compositions.

[0184] When the content of the ester-modified wax increased to 2.0 wt.% in IE-12, the tensile strain at break of the testing samples increased to 65%, which was about 8 times of that in CE-3.

[0185] In CE-4, Elvaloy® AC 1820 was added. As compared with IE-11, the tensile strain at break, impact strength of the sample obtained in CE-4 were much lower.

[0186] As shown in Table 3, in IE-9 to IE-12, both Izod notched impact strength and Izod unnotched impact strength were greatly improved with the introduction of the ester-modified wax as compared with that in CE-3. For example, in IE-12, with the introduction of 2 wt.% the ester-modified wax, the Izod notched impact strength of the testing samples was about 4 times of that in CE-3.

[0187] Table 3 also shows the influence of the ester-modified wax on the surface gloss of the molded articles. The surface gloss of the testing samples in IE-9 to IE-12 was improved with the addition of the ester-modified wax.

TABLE-US-00004 Composition CE-5 IE-13 IE-14 IE-15 IE-16 IE-17 Component A-1 (PC) 51.0 51.0 51.0 50.8 50.6 50.3 Component A-2 (PC) 32.9 32.7 32.5 32.5 32.3 32.1 Component B-3 (Wollastonite) 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 0.2 0.4 0.6 1.0 1.5 Impact Modifier Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (citric acid) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10min 36.3 24.8 27.8 29.6 50.4 68.4 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10min 38.9 25.4 27.0 29.9 42.8 62.3 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 7.2 2.4 -2.9 1.0 -15.1 -8.9 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 10 21 68 68 68 66 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5J kJ/m.sup.2 5.5C 7.9C 9.3C 9.9C 11C 12C Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 11 J kJ/m.sup.2 72C NB NB NB NB NB Gloss h=2 mm, 20 ° GU 5.7 8.0 7.9 9.4 14.6 14.0 h=2 mm, 60 ° GU 19.9 26.2 29.9 35.6 50.8 47.7

[0188] The mineral filler used in examples listed in Table 4 was wollastonite.

[0189] Similarly with that shown in Table 2 and 3, these inventive examples in Table 4 show that the addition of the ester-modified wax reduced the degradation of polycarbonate during the preparation of polycarbonate compositions, improved the tensile strain at break, and improved the Izod notched and unnotched impact strength of the polycarbonate compositions. Moreover, the surface gloss of the polycarbonate compositions was also improved.

TABLE-US-00005 Composition CE-6 IE-18 IE-19 IE-20 IE-21 Component A-1 (PC) 51.20 50.90 50.90 50.70 50.50 Component A-2 (PC) 32.70 32.80 32.60 32.60 32.40 Component B-4 (mica) 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 15.00 Component C (ester-modified wax) 0.2 0.4 0.6 1.0 Impact Modifier Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (citric acid) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10min 37.6 30.0 28.1 29.4 32.7 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10min 42.7 33.5 29.7 28.5 33.9 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 13.6 11.7 5.7 -3.1 3.7 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 9.0 10 20 55 81 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5J kJ/m.sup.2 4.8C 6.0C 7.4C 8.6C 15C Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 11 J kJ/m.sup.2 70C 75C 1.4×10.sup.2P NB(P) NB Gloss h=2 mm, 20 ° GU 4.8 5.9 6.5 6.5 10.0 h=2 mm, 60 ° GU 22.8 27.9 30.0 30.5 45.1

[0190] The mineral filler used in examples listed in Table 5 was mica.

[0191] In Table 5, the inventive examples show that the addition of the ester-modified wax reduced the degradation of polycarbonate during the preparation of the polycarbonate compositions, improved the tensile strain at break, improved both the Izod notched impact strength and Izod unnotched impact strength. Also the surface gloss was improved with the addition of the ester-modified wax.

TABLE-US-00006 Composition CE-7 IE-22 IE-23 IE-24 Component A-1 (PC) 51.2 50.9 50.5 50.0 Component A-2 (PC) 32.7 32.6 32.4 32.4 Component B-5 (fused silica) 15.0 15.0 15.0 15.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 0.4 1.0 1.5 Impact modifier Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (citric acid) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10min 25.4 27.8 58.3 100 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10min 26.8 27.9 63.5 94.3 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 5.5 0.4 8.9 -5.7 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 18 75 78 79 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 6.0C 13C 16C 14C Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 11 J kJ/m.sup.2 NB NB NB NB Gloss h=2 mm, 20° GU 8.3 11.2 29.7 31.0 h=2 mm, 60° GU 39.4 45.7 68.7 66.6

[0192] In examples listed in Table 6, the mineral filler used was fused silica.

[0193] In IE-22 to IE-24, the inventive examples show that the addition of the ester-modified wax reduced the degradation of polycarbonate during the preparation of the polycarbonate compositions, improved the tensile strain at break, and improved both the Izod notched impact strength and Izod unnotched impact strength. Also the surface gloss was improved with the addition of the ester-modified wax.

TABLE-US-00007 Composition CE-8 CE-9 CE-10 IE-25 CE-11 CE-12 IE-26 CE-13 CE-14 CE-15 IE-27 CE-16 CE-17 IE-28 Component A-1 (PC) 99.5 94.0 88.0 91.5 89.0 83.0 86.5 47.3 79 73 76.5 74 68 71.5 Component A-2 (PC) 30.7 Component B-1 (kaolin) 5.0 5.0 5.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 20.0 20.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 Impact Modifier (ABS HRG) 6 6 6 6 6 Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (Irganox B 900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10 min 20.9 44.9 16.8 27.7 70.4 16.8 28.8 24.9 160.0 21.4 20.1 164.0 31.3 17.8 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10 min 21.6 48.3 17.5 28.4 70.0 17.7 26.2 28.5 216.0 24.7 20.5 244.0 30.7 18.5 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 3.3 7.6 4.2 2.5 -0.6 5.4 -9.0 14 35.0 15.4 2.0 48.8 -1.9 3.9 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 100 84 94 110 19 73 110 17 0.6 12 110 0.6 1.8 87 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 10C 67C 49P 59P 4.5C 14C 59P 5.7C 2.5C 4.5C 49P 2.4C 2.6C 34P Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 11 J kJ/m.sup.2 NB NB NB NB NB NB NB 190C 3.3C 110C NB 2.6C 29C NB Vicat softening temperature 50 N; 120 K/h °C 143 139 142 141 136 141 141 137 126 137 142 126 132 141 Gloss h=2 mm, 20° GU 75.6 64.8 93.5 52.0 42.4 84.4 41.4 15.6 20.8 64.9 15.6 22.0 53.7 h=2 mm, 60° GU 96.4 92.4 100 86.4 81.4 98.6 79.3 50.9 64.4 92.2 51.4 58.2 87.5

[0194] The used mineral fillers were kaolin and no ester-modified wax was added in these comparative examples in Table 7.

[0195] With 5 wt.% of kaolin and 2.5 wt.% of the ester-modified wax, the testing sample in IE-25 shows an improvement of 8 times of the notched impact strength as compared with that in CE-9. It was even higher than that in CE-10 with 6 wt.% of ABS HRG as the impact modifier.

[0196] Besides notched impact strength, the addition of the ester-modified wax shows further advantages over ABS HRG, for example, the testing sample in IE-25 exhibited much better surface gloss than those in CE-10.

[0197] CE-14 and CE-16 in Table 7 show higher ΔMVR as compared with that in the IE-25∼28, which means that the addition of the ester-modified wax in the IE-25∼28 reduced the degradation of polycarbonate.

[0198] Table 7 further shows that with a higher loading of kaolin (e.g., larger than 10 wt.%) and the ester-modified wax, the testing samples show much better performance than that testing samples in CE-15 and CE-17 in which ABS HRG was added as the impact modifier. Moreover, the introduction of the ester-modified wax in the testing samples according to the invention, in particularly in IE-27 and IE-28, also brought higher Vicat soft temperature, as compared with the addition of ABS HRG.

TABLE-US-00008 Compositions CE-18 CE-19 IE-29 CE-20 CE-21 IE-30 CE-22 CE-23 CE-24 IE-31 CE-25 CE-26 IE-32 Component A-1 (PC) 93.9 87.9 92.4 88.9 82.9 86.4 47.3 78.9 72.9 76.4 73.9 67.9 71.4 Component A-2 (PC) 30.6 Component B-2 (talc) 5.0 5.0 5.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 20.0 20.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 Component C (ester-modified wax) 1.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 Impact Modifier (ABS HRG) 6 6 6 6 6 Component D (PETS) 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 Component E (B900) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component F (citric acid) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 Component G (carbon black) 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 Properties Test conditions Units MVR 260° C., 5 kg cm.sup.3/10 min 24.1 15.4 29.9 46.3 13.6 20.8 15.6 160.0 11.5 20.2 244.0 12.7 16.5 iMVR 260° C., 5 kg, 15 min cm.sup.3/10 min 28.5 15.3 31.8 64.6 13.8 24.4 16.5 272.0 13.4 19.3 395.0 13.2 17.4 ΔMVR 260° C., 5 kg % 18.3 -0.6 6.4 39.5 1.5 17.3 5.8 70.0 14.5 -4.5 61.9 3.9 5.5 Tensile strain at break 50 mm/min % 100 100 110 14 110 110 13 1.3 11 41 1.0 4.2 18 Izod notched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 5.5 J kJ/m.sup.2 7.0C 37P 29P/C 5.8C 15C 48P 7.3C 2.7C 6.9C 45P 2.8C 5.2C 36P Izod unnotched impact strength 23° C., 4 mm, 11 J kJ/m.sup.2 NB NB NB NB NB NB 100P 9.0C 120P NB 4.6C 60C NB Gloss h=2 mm, 20° GU 10.2 15.2 29.9 4.0 6.2 32.5 6.4 3.7 4.5 11.2 2.3 3.8 6.9 h=2 mm, 60° GU 57.6 64.3 76.8 39.9 45.3 78.6 36.4 31 27.8 57.8 22 22.6 42.7

[0199] CE-18∼26 had no ester-modified wax added. The used mineral fillers in examples in Table 8 were talc.

[0200] In IE-29, with 5 wt.% of talc and 1.5 wt.% of the ester-modified wax, the testing samples show improved notched impact strength by 4 times of that in CE-18.

[0201] In IE-31, with 10 wt.% of talc and 2.5 wt.% of the ester-modified wax, the testing samples show improved notched impact strength by 8 times of that in CE-20. It was even higher than that in CE-21, which had 6 wt.% of ABS HRG as the impact modifier.

[0202] Besides that, the testing samples in Table 8 show that the combination of the ester-modified wax with other components had the advantages of much higher MVR and surface gloss over the use of ABS HRG with other components in the comparative testing samples.

[0203] Table 8 shows that with a higher loading of talc (e.g., larger than 15 wt.%) and the introduction of the ester-modified wax, the testing samples in IE-31 and IE-32 show much better performance, such as longer tensile strain at break, higher Izod notched impact strength, and higher surface gloss, than the testing samples in CE-24 and CE-26 which used ABS HRG as the impact modifier.

[0204] The introduction of the ester-modified wax into the mineral filled polycarbonate compositions, in particular, the synergistic effect of the ester-modified wax, the mineral fillers and other components in the polycarbonate compositions, leads to the prominent improvement on properties such as impact strength, tensile elongation at break and surface gloss of the polycarbonate compositions. The polycarbonate compositions according to this invention even have better impact strength than that prepared with the addition of impact modifiers such as ABS HRG.

[0205] As shown in the inventive examples of this invention, the polycarbonate compositions with mineral fillers of kaolin or talc have surprisingly huge property improvement on the impact strength, tensile elongation at break and surface gloss. The polycarbonate compositions with wollastonite, mica or fused silica can also get pronounced improvement on the impact strength, tensile elongation at break and surface gloss.

[0206] The introduction of the ester-modified wax, in particular as a combination with other components and mineral fillers such as kaolin, can also improve Vicat soft temperature of polycarbonate compositions. Regarding the improvement of Vicat soft temperature, the inventive examples show that relative higher mineral filler loadings can be preferred in the polycarbonate compositions.

[0207] The inventive examples are only preferred examples of the present invention, being not employed to limit the invention. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and variations can be made to the compositions and processes of the present invention without departing from the scope of the invention. With reference to the disclosure in the present description, those skilled in the art may also reach other examples. The present description and examples should be only regarded as illustrative, and the true scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.