Shear characterization of CaCO3-filled linear low density polyethylene

Shear properties of CaCO3-filled linear low density polyethylene have been determined over a wide range of filler loading. The viscosity rises with the filler loading especially at low shear rates and a yield value appears for CaCO3-contents larger than 5%. The decrease of the die-swell ratios of the filled samples indicates a reduction of the melt elasticity.