Morphology and Mechanical Properties of Rubber Toughened Amorphous Polyamide/MMT Nanocomposites

Effect of Graphene Oxide Modified with Organic Amine on the Aging Resistance, Rolling Loss and Wet-skid Resistance of Solution Polymerized Styrene-Butadiene Rubber

Graphene oxide (GO) was modified by p-phenylenediamine (PPD), aiming at improving the wet-skid resistance and reduce the rolling loss of solution polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR). PPD with amino groups enabled GO to obtain anti-aging function. The structure of modified GO (PPD-GO) was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. Mechanical tests showed that the mechanical properties of SSBR before and after aging were improved by adding PPD-GO. The results of thermogravimetric-differential scanning calorimeter synchronization analysis (TGA-DSC) indicated that SSBR/PPD-GO obtained good thermo-oxidative stability. The dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) of SSBR composites showed that the mechanical loss factor (tanδ) peak moved to high temperature with the content of PPD-GO. The tanδ values of SSBR composites showed that it had a good effect on improving the wet-skid resistance and reducing the rolling loss of SSBR by adjusting the content of PPD-GO. In particular, with the addition of 4 phr GO, SSBR was effectively improved in mechanical properties, aging resistance, wet-skid resistance and low rolling loss.

Blends of rABS and SEBS: Influence of In-Situ Compatibilization on the Mechanical Properties

In this study, the in-situ compatibilization reaction between recycled acrylonitrile–butadiene–styrene copolymer (rABS) and functional styrene–ethylene–butylene–styrene block maleic anhydride (SEBS-g-MAH) was confirmed, which contributed to the toughening phenomenon of rABS, especially the notched impact strength. As mechanical test that manifested, the rABS/SEBS-g-MAH blends are stronger and more ductile than the rABS/SEBS blends. Prominently, the former has great advantage over the latter in terms of improving the impact performance. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images showed that the compatible segments that were generated by reaction not only improve the interface adhesion of rABS/SEBS-g-MAH blends but also promote the evolution of co-continuous structures, which can be evidently observed after etching. Furthermore, the SEM micrographs of tensile fracture surfaces indicated that the formation of the co-continuous phase and the improvement of interface adhesion are the most profound reasons for the excellent tensile properties of the rABS/SEBS-g-MAH blends. The impact fracture surface revealed that two-phase interface affects crack propagation and shear yielding absorbs more impact energy than simple interface debonding does at higher deformation rates. Meanwhile, rheological analysis demonstrated that the complex viscosity of the rABS/SEBS-g-MAH (80/20 wt%) blend with a co-continuous structure exhibits a maximum positive deviation at low frequencies from the theoretical value calculated using the rule of logarithmic sum, which indicated a connection between co-continuous structure and complex viscosity. In addition, the storage modulus vs. loss modulus curves of the blends revealed that the viscoelastic behavior of rABS/SEBS-g-MAH blends is very similar to that of rABS.

Structure and properties of PA6-66/γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane-modified clay nanocomposites prepared by in situ polymerization

In this study, PA6-66/γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane-modified clay nanocomposites were prepared by in situ polymerization. It was found that the γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane was chemically grafted onto clay successfully, and the covalent bond was formed between the clay and polymer chains. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results indicated that intercalated and exfoliated nanocomposites were obtained. The PA6-66 nanocomposites exhibited improved mechanical performance compared to that of neat PA6-66. Most importantly, the PA6-66 nanocomposites showed significantly improved toughness. In comparison with neat PA6-66, the rupture stress and elongation at the break of the nanocomposite with only 0.5 wt% clay increased 91.9% and 91.8%, respectively. The excellent toughness of PA6-66 nanocomposites should be mainly ascribed to the combined effects of strong polymer-clay interaction, the intercalated-exfoliated structures of clay, refined crystalline, formation of γ-form crystals, and decreased crystallinity of PA6-66.

Simultaneous Hardening/Ductilizing Effects of Cryogenic Nanohybridization of Biopolyamides with Montmorillonites

We prepared organic/inorganic bionanohybrid resins of polyamides containing pyrrolidone in the backbone derived from the salt monomers of an itaconic acid biomolecule with various nanofillers, montmorillonites (MMTs), by cryogenic nanohybridizations. The nanohybridizations with MMTs hardened and strengthened the polypyrrolidone bioplastic resins owing to a simple reinforcement of hard filler incorporation. On the other hand, the elongation at break of the resins is unexpectedly increased by the nanohybridization with MMT sodium salt (NaMMT) to enhance the strain energy density, which differed from those of the nanohybrids with other organically modified MMTs. From spectroscopic analyses, we discuss the mechanism of such ductilization effects by NaMMT, the catalytic effect of NaMMT on partially opening the pyrrolidone ring to make polymer backbones flexible and to form carboxyl side chains that are strongly interactive with NaMMT fillers.

Hierarchical structures of olefinic blocky copolymer/montmorillonite nanocomposites with collapsed and intercalated clay layers

Hierarchical structures of two types of nanocomposite at different scales were characterized by various techniques.

Bio-inspired high-performance and recyclable cross-linked polymers

Bio-inspired molecular design and synthesis of high-performance and recyclable cross-linked polymers is reported. Reversible cross-links between hard segments are incorporated into linear segmented polyurethane via Diels-Alder reaction between maleimide pendant group and furan cross-linker. The materials form hierarchical structure and exhibit excellent properties with high stiffness, strength and toughness, and can be easily thermally reshaped and re-mended.

Highly ordered hierarchical poly(ethylene oxide)-b-polystyrene/organoclay nanocomposites

A lamellar forming poly(ethylene oxide)-b-polystyrene (PEO-b-PS)/organoclay nanocomposite with a unique hierarchical structure has been fabricated, by casting solution blends of the block copolymer and organoclay, with subsequent annealing at 180 °C for 8 h under uniaxial constraint. PEO-b-PS provided the nanocomposite lamellar structure with a slightly increased long period. Lamellar layers of the nanocomposite block copolymer were oriented parallel to the film plane. Fully exfoliated clay platelets were localized mostly in the aligned PEO layers, and all platelets were found to be parallel to the interface between PEO and PS layers. PEO crystals in the nanocomposite were oriented with the c-axis perpendicular to the phase-separated layers. The orientation function degree of the PEO crystals within the nanocomposite was lower than that of the crystals within the neat block copolymer.