Relationship between morphology and rheology of PA/PE/Clay blend nanocomposites. I. PA matrix

Abstract

Abstract Morphology and linear viscoelastic properties of PA/PE/Clay blend nanocomposites with and without compatibilizer (PE‐ g ‐MA) with PA as a matrix phase were studied. Using rheological and XRD analyses, it was shown that the clay exhibited higher dispersion in PA/PE blend than that in pure PA. It was attributed to the detachment of intercalated clay layers in PA matrix due to the stress transfer of PE particles and deformation flow field created between PE particles, leading to formation of stronger network. The presence of PE‐ g ‐MA further enhanced the clay dispersion in the blend. While the results of XRD were not able to accurately assess the morphology, using rheological analysis it was predicted that if the clay is first compounded with dispersed PE phase (PE+PE‐ g ‐MA), the clay could not leave the PE phase but PA diffuses to the composite droplets of (PE+PE‐ g ‐MA)/Clay to form phase within phase within phase morphology. SEM and TEM analyses confirmed the reliability of the prediction. It was demonstrated that the rheological studies has a reliable sensitivity to the clay dispersion, its localization, and phase morphology of blend nanocomposites. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012