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Industrial Production of Fluoroelastomer Nanocomposites by Microemulsion Polymerization followed by Co‐Coagulation
Author(s) -
Apostolo M.,
Chernysheva L.,
Fantoni M.,
Verneau B.
Publication year - 2010
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.200900008
Subject(s) - materials science , microemulsion , nano , nanocomposite , composite material , composite number , polymerization , polymer , chemical engineering , pulmonary surfactant , engineering
Summary : In this paper synthesis and properties of fluoroelastomer nano‐composites are discussed. The production technology is based on two steps: first, high solid content nano‐latex of a semi‐crystalline perfluoropolymer is produced by means of a special microemulsion polymerization; then, co‐coagulation of this latex with a fluoroelastomer latex leads to the formation of the nano‐composite. When properly designed, fluoroelastomer nano‐composites develop properties that are better than those of each individual polymer of the blend. This paper is particularly focused on the remarkable values of reinforcement and permeability that can be achieved with these nano‐composites. A simple model is developed to better understand the origin of such properties. The model provides a possible explanation of the observed increase in nano‐composite properties when the size of the dispersed phase is below 100 nm, that is in the nano‐scale region. Finally, selected examples of industrial application of these nano‐composites are briefly discussed.