Premium
Influence of the dispersion of Nanoclays on the cellular structure of foams based on polystyrene
Author(s) -
Ballesteros Alberto,
LagunaGutierrez Ester,
CimavillaRoman Paula,
Puertas Maria Luisa,
EstebanCubillo Antonio,
Santaren Julio,
RodriguezPerez Miguel Angel
Publication year - 2021
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.51373
Subject(s) - materials science , extrusion , polystyrene , dispersion (optics) , polymer , rheology , dissolution , composite material , chemical engineering , physics , optics , engineering
In the present work blends of polystyrene (PS) with sepiolites have been produced using a melt extrusion process. The dispersion degree of the sepiolites in the PS has been analyzed by dynamic shear rheology and X‐ray micro‐computed tomography. Sepiolites treated with quaternary ammonium salts (O‐QASEP) are better dispersed in the PS matrix than natural sepiolites (N‐SEP) or sepiolites organo‐modified with silane groups (O‐SGSEP). A percolated network is obtained when using 6.0 wt% of O‐QASEP, 8.0 wt% of N‐SEP and 10.0 wt% of O‐SGSEP. It has been shown that multiple extrusion processes have a negative effect on the polymer architecture. They produce a reduction in the length of the polymeric chains, and they do not lead to a better dispersion of the particles in the polymer matrix. Foams have been produced using a gas dissolution foaming process, where a strong effect of the dispersion degree on the cellular structure of the different foams was found. The effects on the cellular structure obtained by using different types of sepiolites, different contents of sepiolites and different extrusion conditions have been analyzed. The foams produced with the formulations containing O‐QASEP present the lowest cell size and the most homogeneous cellular structures.