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In situ formation of nanocomposites based on polyethylene and silica nanospheres
Author(s) -
Zapata Paula,
Quijada Raúl,
Benavente Rosario
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.32888
Subject(s) - methylaluminoxane , materials science , nanocomposite , polyethylene , polymerization , polymer chemistry , polymer , in situ polymerization , chemical engineering , coordination polymerization , post metallocene catalyst , metallocene , radical polymerization , composite material , engineering
Polyethylene nanocomposites containing silica nanospheres, synthesized by the sol–gel method, were produced via in situ polymerization. The silica nanospheres were added together with the catalytic system [metallocene catalyst and methylaluminoxane (MAO) as cocatalyst] directly to the reactor and used for the polymerization of ethylene. The polymerization activity increased slightly in the presence of 1 wt % silica nanospheres in comparison to the homogeneous polymerization sans filler. The Young's modulus of the nanocomposites increased 19–25% without a significant decrease in the elongation at break with respect to the neat polyethylene. The polymer particle morphology was also significantly improved with the incorporation of silica nanospheres. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011