Morphology, Thermal Stability, and Mechanical Behavior of [Poly(propylene)‐grafted Maleic Anhydride]‐Layered Expanded Graphite Oxide Composites

PP‐ g ‐MA‐layered EGO composites were prepared directly by solution blending. Two types of PP‐ g ‐MA/EGO composites were prepared using different mixing methods: distributive and dispersive. In this study, the effects of the mixing method of EGO on the crystalline structure and thermo‐mechanical properties of PP‐ g ‐MA/EGO composites are reported. WAXD exhibited a shift in 2 θ of the monoclinic ( α ) phase of PP‐ g ‐MA and (002) EGO peaks for PP‐ g ‐MA/EGO layered composites, which indicated a modification of the crystalline structure of PP‐ g ‐MA in the layered composites. DSC exhibited a single characteristic melting peak of monoclinic ( α ) crystalline phase PP‐ g ‐MA. The incorporation of EGO increased T c indicating that the EGO acted as a nucleating agent for PP‐ g ‐MA. The crystallinity of the PP‐ g ‐MA/EGO composites was found to be dependent on the mixing method. Thermogravimetry demonstrated that PP‐ g ‐MA in the presence of EGO has higher degradation temperature, suggesting that the graphite particles acted as a thermal barrier material for PP‐ g ‐MA. DMA indicated that incorporation of EGO into PP‐ g ‐MA increased the storage modulus, due to the hydrogen bonding between EGO and MA of PP‐ g ‐MA.