Solid-state NMR study of intercalated species in poly(epsilon-caprolactone)/clay nanocomposites

Structure and Dynamics of Nonionic Surfactant Aggregates in Layered Materials

The aggregation of surfactants on solid surfaces as they are adsorbed from solution is the basis of numerous technological applications such as colloidal stabilization, ore flotation, and floor cleaning. The understanding of both the structure and the dynamics of surfactant aggregates applies to the development of alternative ways of preparing hybrid layered materials. For this purpose, we study the adsorption of the triethylene glycol mono n-decyl ether (C₁₀E₃) nonionic surfactant onto a synthetic montmorillonite (Mt), an aluminosilicate clay mineral for organoclay preparation with important applications in materials sciences, catalysis, wastewater treatment, or as drug delivery. The aggregation mechanisms follow those observed in an analogous natural Mt, with the condensation of C₁₀E₃ in a bilayer arrangement once the surfactant self-assembles in a lamellar phase beyond the critical micelle concentration, underlining the importance of the surfactant state in solution. Solid-state ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) at fast magic-angle spinning (MAS) and high magnetic field combined with¹H-¹³C correlation experiments and different types of ¹³C NMR experiments selectively probes mobile or rigid moieties of C₁₀E₃ in three different aggregate organizations: (i) a lateral monolayer, (ii) a lateral bilayer, and (iii) a normal bilayer. High-resolution ¹H{²⁷Al} CP-¹H-¹H spin diffusion experiments shed light on the proximities and dynamics of the different fragments and fractions of the intercalated surfactant molecules with respect to the Mt surface. ²³Na and ¹H NMR measurements combined with complementary NMR data, at both molecular and nanometer scales, precisely pointed out the location of the C₁₀E₃ ethylene oxide hydrophilic group in close contact with the Mt surface interacting through ion-dipole or van der Waals interactions.

Polystyrene/Phosphonium Organoclay Nanocomposites by Melt Compounding

Polystyrene-montmorillonite nanocomposites were prepared by melt compounding, using several ammonium and phosphonium organoclays. Melt processing was carried out in a twin screw extrusion system, specially modified to produce improved dispersion and longer residence time. The effect of molecular weight of polystyrene on clay dispersion and property enhancement was evaluated. Nanocomposite structure was characterized by wide angle x-ray diffraction (WAXD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Thermal stability and mechanical and barrier properties were also determined. The quality of dispersion of organically modified montmorillonite depended on the molecular weight of the polystyrene resin. Barrier properties were measured and compared to predictions of permeability models available in the literature. Clay dispersion and property enhancement were explained in relation to the surface characteristics of the organoclays, and the work of adhesion at the polystyrene-clay interface was correlated with the tensile modulus of the nanocomposites.

Well-defined oxide core-polymer shell nanoparticles: interfacial interactions, peculiar dynamics, and transitions in polymer nanolayers

Interfacial interactions, chain dynamics, and glass and melting transitions were studied in well-defined core-shell nanoparticles with amorphous silica or crystalline alumina cores and noncrystallizable poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) or crystallizable poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) shells. Varying particle composition caused regular changes in the shell thickness from 1 to 2 nm (monomolecular layer) up to 90 nm. Far- and mid-IR spectroscopy allowed us to register hydrogen bonding and, tentatively, Lewis/Brønsted (LB) interfacial interactions as well as changes in the dynamics and conformational state of the polymer chains as a function of the nanoshell thickness. Their most pronounced peculiarities were found for the monomolecular polymer layers. The LB interactions were stronger with the alumina substrate than silica. DSC analysis was performed, and the data obtained were in agreement with the spectroscopic data. Unlike the bulk polymer, the PVP monolayer was characterized with an extraordinarily large dynamic heterogeneity within the glass transition while broadening the transition range and varying the activation energy by an order of magnitude. The PEG monolayer adsorbed on silica was totally amorphous, whereas a highly crystalline one with the anomalously thin lamellae, down to 3 nm thick, was adsorbed on an alumina surface, presumably as a result of the quasi-heteroepitaxial crystallization process.

A pulsed EPR study of surfactant layer structure in composites of a synthetic layered silicate with polystyrene and polycaprolactone

Double electron electron resonance (DEER), deuterium electron spin-echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) spectroscopy and 31P electron nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) spectroscopy were applied to site-specifically spin-labeled surfactants in the organically modified layered silicate magadiite and its composites with polystyrene (PS) and polycaprolactone (PCL). The organomagadiite consist of stacks of silicate platelets with surfactant layers between these platelets. In PS composites the stacks are dispersed in the polymer matrix as a whole, while melt processing with PCL leads to intercalation of polymer chains into the galleries between the platelets. The DEER data prove that even in the case of the non-intercalated PS composites the density of surfactant molecules changes drastically during composite formation on length scales of a few nanometers. Deuterium ESEEM data demonstrate that spin labels attached both in the middle and at the end of the alkyl chain have contact with the headgroups of neighboring surfactant molecules. By analysis of the 31P ENDOR spectra, two characteristic distances are found between the spin labels and the headgroups of phosphonium surfactants. The shorter, proximal distance can be assigned to headgroups in the same surfactant layer. By comparison with the basal spacing between consecutive silicate platelets the longer, distal distance is assigned to a layer of surfactants that is not attached to the surface of the next platelet but rather located between platelets. Altogether the data support a picture of trilayers of disordered surfactant molecules with their alkyl chains oriented nearly parallel to the surface.

Motional heterogeneity of intercalated species in modified clays and poly(epsilon-caprolactone)/clay nanocomposites

Modified laponites and synthetic saponites are used as precursors for the preparation of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL)/clay nanocomposites. The structure and dynamics of species intercalated in the modified clays and the corresponding nanocomposites are characterized by X-ray diffraction and magic-angle spinning NMR. The influence of the headgroup, the hydrocarbon chain length, and the loading of the surfactant on the nanocomposite formation are discussed. The yield of PCL intercalation is related to the probability of direct polymer-clay interactions and to the size of the clay platelets. Relaxation times in the laboratory and rotating frames that allow characterization of fast and slow molecular dynamics in these systems are discussed, showing a motional heterogeneity of the intercalated species.