Percolation Network Formation in Nylon 6/Montmorillonite Nanocomposites: A Critical Structural Insight and the Impact on Solidification Process and Mechanical Behavior.

The incorporation of montmorillonite (MMT) into Nylon 6 can endow advantages like improved mechanical strength and thermal stability, making Nylon 6/MMT a possible ideal alternative for Nylon 66. However, the relationship between the microstructure and physical properties of nylon 6/MMT nanocomposites is unclear so far due to the complicated system, including the highly asymmetric geometry of the exfoliated MMT layer and the complicated interaction between MMT layers and entangled nylon 6 chains. Herein, we focus on two processes, namely the impact of MMT on the solidification procedure during molding and the toughness-brittleness transition during the tensile stretch, in order to elucidate the structure-property relationship of nylon 6/MMT composites.

Identifying the phase behavior of biodegradable poly(hexamethylene succinate-co-hexamethylene adipate) copolymers with FTIR.

Whether a phase separation or a cocrystallization occurs in poly(hexamethylene succinate-co-hexamethylene adipate) (P(HS-co-HA)) copolymers was studied with a combination of wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. With HA as the majority, the presence of HS comonomers leads to weakening and broadening of (10l) peaks in the X-ray fiber diffraction patterns, while a crystal structure similar to PHS is formed in the copolymer with HS as the majority. The X-ray diffraction patterns imply possible cocrystallization between HS and HA comonomers, but cannot lead to an unambiguous conclusion, which was clarified with the compensative tool of FTIR.