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Crystallization of a Polyamide 6/Montmorillonite Nanocomposite at Rapid Cooling
Author(s) -
Mileva Daniela,
Monami Andrea,
Cavallo Dario,
Alfonso Giovanni C.,
Portale Giuseppe,
Androsch René
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
macromolecular materials and engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.913
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1439-2054
pISSN - 1438-7492
DOI - 10.1002/mame.201200253
Subject(s) - materials science , nanocomposite , mesophase , montmorillonite , nucleation , crystallization , supercooling , polyamide , chemical engineering , polymer , composite material , small angle x ray scattering , scattering , liquid crystal , thermodynamics , optics , physics , optoelectronics , engineering
The crystallization behavior of a polyamide 6/organo‐modified montmorillonite (PA 6/OMMT) nanocomposite has been investigated by scanning chip calorimetry and wide‐angle X‐ray scattering, with emphasis placed on the evaluation of the effect of supercooling/cooling rate on the crystal/mesophase polymorphism of the PA 6 matrix. Presence of OMMT has negligible effect on the kinetics of formation of α‐crystals of PA 6 at low cooling rate while there is observed enhanced nucleation of γ‐mesophase on fast cooling. Furthermore, addition of OMMT leads to a distinct increase of the cooling rate required to completely vitrify the amorphous state. The performed experiments demonstrate that the nucleating effect of OMMT in PA 6/OMMT nanocomposites is of particular importance at cooling conditions relevant in polymer processing.