Exfoliation of clays in poly(dimethylsiloxane) rubber using an unexpected couple: a silicone surfactant and water.

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS)/montmorillonite (MMT) composites have been prepared using a newly synthesized omega-ammonium functionalized poly(dimethylsiloxane) compatibilizer coupled with a dispersion technique in water. The organoclay containing the new siloxane surfactant was characterized by TGA and XRD. For the first time, a nanoscopic dispersion of MMT nanoplatelets in the PDMS composite cured by hydrosilylation and a good compatibility between clay layers and matrix were obtained.

Microscopic morphology of chlorinated polyethylene-based nanocomposites synthesized from poly(epsilon-caprolactone)/clay masterbatches.

Chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) nanocomposites were synthesized by melt blending clay-rich/poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL) masterbatches to CPE matrices. The masterbatches were prepared following two synthetic routes: either PCL is melt-blended to the clay or it is grafted to the clay platelets by in situ polymerization. The microscopic morphology of the nanocomposites was characterized by X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and modulated temperature differential scanning calorimetry.

Polyethylene organo-clay nanocomposites: the role of the interface chemistry on the extent of clay intercalation/exfoliation.

High density polyethylene (HDPE)/clay nanocomposites have been prepared using three different functionalized polyethylene compatibilizers: an ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer, a polyethylene grafted with maleic anhydride functions and a (styrene-b-ethylene/butylene-b-styrene) block copolymer. The nanocomposites were prepared via two different routes: (1) the dispersion in HDPE of a masterbatch prepared from the compatibilizer and the clay or (2) the direct melt blending of the three components. For each compatibilizer, essentially intercalated nanocomposites were formed as determined by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy.

Nanorubbing of polythiophene surfaces.

This work describes a new orientation method for semicrystalline poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) thin films, coupling nanorubbing and subsequent crystallization. Using the stylus of an atomic force microscope, we align the polymer chains on P3HT surfaces with a spatial and geometrical control of the oriented domains (nanorubbing). These chain-aligned structures can be made permanent thanks to the crystallization process, which propagates the orientation obtained at the surface to the bulk.

Supported coordination polymerization: a unique way to potent polyolefin carbon nanotube nanocomposites.

Homogeneous surface coating of long carbon nanotubes is achieved by in situ polymerization of ethylene as catalyzed directly from the nanotube surface-treated by a highly active metallocene-based complex and allows for the break-up of the native nanotube bundles leading, upon further melt blending with HDPE, to high-performance polyolefinic nanocomposites.