A comparative study of polyethylene and polyethylene/C 60 nanocomposites modified with organic peroxide

Polyethylene (PE)/fullerene C 60 nanocomposites, and PE samples for comparison in the presence of 0.1 wt % and 0.3 wt % 2, 5‐dimethyl‐2, 5(tert‐butylperoxy) hexane peroxide (DHBP) were prepared by melt mixing. FTIR characterization showed that reactive C 60 could be grafted onto PE chains via a radical mechanism. As a result, the dispersion state of C 60 was improved, and the chain extension reaction of PE macroradicals and final topological structures were largely influenced. Linear viscoelastic response of PE and PE/C 60 nanocomposites containing the same content of peroxide showed much difference. Furthermore, the results of dynamic time sweep tests demonstrated that the addition of C 60 could accelerate chain extension reaction. The presence of C 60 could largely improve the thermal stability of PE due to the radical scavenging nature of C 60 . However, the crystallization behavior, melting behavior and mechanical properties of both PE and PE/C 60 samples were mainly determined by the content of peroxide. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013