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Synthesis, Characterization and Properties of (Vinyl Triethoxy Silane‐grafted PP)/Silica Nanocomposites
Author(s) -
Jain S.,
Goossens J.G.P.,
van Duin M.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
macromolecular symposia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.257
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-3900
pISSN - 1022-1360
DOI - 10.1002/masy.200690022
Subject(s) - materials science , silane , nanocomposite , toughness , fumed silica , composite material , chemical engineering , sol gel , polymer chemistry , nanotechnology , engineering
A new route has been developed to produce PP/silica nanocomposites starting from porous PP reactor powder and making use of sol‐gel chemistry. Silica‐like, nano‐sized particles were prepared in the pores of the PP reactor powder with a controlled degree of adhesion between PP and silica. Magic‐angle spinning (MAS) 29 Si NMR spectra showed that the chemical building blocks of the silica‐like clusters are of Q 3 and Q 4 ‐type. For (vinyl triethoxy silane (VTES)‐grafted PP)/silica nanocomposites, VTES was grafted via solid‐state modification (SSM) in porous PP particles. Subsequently, silica particles were prepared by sol‐gel technology in the VTES‐grafted PP. MAS 29 Si NMR and FT‐IR spectroscopy showed that the grafted VTES becomes part of the in‐situ formed silica particles. The study on the mechanical properties of (VTES‐grafted PP)/silica nanocomposites showed that the silica particles improved the impact toughness of PP by a factor of 2, when there is no chemical interaction between the particles and the matrix, while for (VTES‐grafted PP)/silica nanocomposites the impact toughness decreased. This indicates that chemical bonding between the filler particles and the PP‐matrix results in brittle failure and supports the hypothesis that debonding is necessary for improving the impact toughness of PP with inorganic fillers.