Three different methods of fabricating polymer layered silicate (PLS) nanocomposites based upon a tri-functional epoxy resin are compared in respect of the nanostructure and impact energy of the cured nanocomposites. The three methods are designed to maximise the amount of intra-gallery reaction that takes place during cure, and this paper examines separately the effects of: (i) increasing the isothermal cure temperature; (ii) preconditioning the resin/clay mixture; and (iii) incorporating an initiator of homopolymerisation within the clay galleries. It is shown that each of these methods increases the degree of exfoliation in the cured nanocomposite, and that this improved nanostructure correlates also with an increase in the impact energy.
Hutchinson, J. M., Shiravand, F., Calventus, Y., & Ferrando, F. (2014). Comparative results between three protocols for achieving highly exfoliated epoxy-clay nanocomposites. Polimery, 59(9), 636–642. https://doi.org/10.14314/polimery.2014.636
Affiliation
Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Higher Technical School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering, C/ Colom 11, 08222 Terrassa, Spain
F. Shiravand
Affiliation
Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Higher Technical School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering, C/ Colom 11, 08222 Terrassa, Spain
Y. Calventus
Affiliation
Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Higher Technical School of Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering, C/ Colom 11, 08222 Terrassa, Spain
F. Ferrando
Affiliation
Rovira and Virgili University, Department of Mechanical Engineering, C/ Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain