The Preparation And Properties Of Polypropylene/Montmorillonite Nanocomposites

In order to improve the compatibility between montmorillonite (MMT) and the organic phases, the intercalation modification of montmorillonite (MMT) was investigated in this paper. A series of organic montmorillonite (OMMT) were prepared using sodium type MMT through cation exchange with CTAB, and characterized by FTIR, WXRD and TG/DTG etc. The FTIR and TG spectrogram showed that the organic reagents had been intercalated into the layers of MMT. The interlayer spacing of MMT was detected using X-ray diffractometer and was abserved to have increased from 1.2nm to 3.97nm.The PP/MAPP/OMMT nanocomposites using isotactic polypropylene (PP), maleic anhydride grafted PP (MAPP, as compatibilizer) and organic montmorillonite were prepared by melt intercalation. The PP/EPDM-MA/OMMT nanocomposites also were prepared using the maleic anhydride grafted EPDM (EPDM-MA) as compatibilizer. The dispersed morphologies of OMMT in composites were researched by WAXD. The preparation, structure and properties of the composites were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), SEM, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing optical microscopy (POM), melt flow rate (MFR), torque rheometer, tensile, and impact and flexural tests.It was indicated that the compatibilizer in the hybrids was a key factor to produce the nanocomposites. The PP/MAPP/OMMT nanocomposites showed better intercalation effects than PP/EPDM-MA/OMMT nanocomposites. OMMT of the PP/MAPP/OMMT nanocomposites were uniform dispersed in the polymer, while some OMMT aggregates were packed in the EPDM-MA pellets in PP/EPDM-MA/OMMT nanocomposites. The crystal type of PP of both composites didn't chang. OMMT could reduce the minicrystal...