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Effect of montmorillonite on morphology, rheology, and properties of a poly[styrene–(ethylene-co-butylene)–styrene]/poly(ɛ-caprolactone) nanocomposite

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Abstract

In this study, a nanocomposite of poly[styrene–(ethylene-co-butylene)–styrene] triblock copolymer (SEBS) and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) blend modified with an alkyl phosphonium salt-intercalated organic montmorillonite (OMMT) was prepared by melt mixing. The effect of OMMT and the compatibilizer SEBS-MA on structure, morphology, rheological behavior, and crystallization properties of the SEBS/PCL nanocomposites was studied. Better dispersion of PCL domains in SEBS matrix was achieved after adding 5 wt% SEBS-MA, with the crystallinity of the PCL increased considerably. Compared with pristine montmorillonite, the SEBS/PCL composite with OMMT showed a more uniform dispersion. Meanwhile, the OMMT platelets were preferentially dispersed at outer edge of the PCL domains with intercalated structure. Good interfacial interaction between the OMMT and the SEBS/PCL matrix was suggested, with occurrence of intermolecular hydrogen bonding between the PCL and the OMMT. The prepared SEBS/PCL/OMMT nanocomposite displayed significantly improved mechanical, anti-water-absorption, and anti-UV-irradiation properties, which can be attributed to its unique morphology. These superior properties of the SEBS/PCL/OMMT nanocomposite are important for both environmental and biomedical applications.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51403128 and 51373100).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Material Science and Technology, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, China

    Xiaoyan Li, Kai Huang, Hui Li, Wanting Shen, Xiaoqing Zhou, Jianjun Xu & Xia Wang

  2. Laboratory for Micromolding and Polymer Rheology, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Xue Wang

  3. Department Technology and Characterization, DSM Materials Science Center, Urmonderbaan 22, 6167 RD, Geleen, Netherlands

    Jianjun Xu

Authors
  1. Xiaoyan Li
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  2. Kai Huang
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  4. Hui Li
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  6. Xiaoqing Zhou
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Contributions

XL and XW designed the experiments, whereas XW and KH conducted the experiments. Meanwhile, WS and XZ and HL assisted in the experimentation. JX and XW revised the manuscript. All the authors have read and approved the final paper.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Jianjun Xu or Xia Wang.

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Li, X., Huang, K., Wang, X. et al. Effect of montmorillonite on morphology, rheology, and properties of a poly[styrene–(ethylene-co-butylene)–styrene]/poly(ɛ-caprolactone) nanocomposite. J Mater Sci 53, 1191–1203 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1606-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1606-4

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