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X‐ray diffraction studies and phase volume determinations in poly(ethylene glycol)–montmorillonite nanocomposites
Author(s) -
Chen Biqiong,
Evans Julian RG
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
polymer international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.592
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1097-0126
pISSN - 0959-8103
DOI - 10.1002/pi.1774
Subject(s) - montmorillonite , intercalation (chemistry) , polymer , materials science , nanocomposite , ethylene glycol , polymer clay , polymer nanocomposite , chemical engineering , diffraction , polymer chemistry , phase (matter) , exfoliation joint , composite material , chemistry , graphene , nanotechnology , organic chemistry , optics , physics , engineering
Poly(ethylene glycol)–montmorillonite nanocomposites were prepared by both solution and melt intercalation methods with a range of polymer molecular weights and at a range of polymer loadings. Particular attention was given to the reliability of low‐angle X‐ray diffraction results for basal plane spacing and a sound correlation between three diffractometers was obtained (±0.005 nm). Expansion of the basal plane spacing from 1.23 nm to 1.82 nm by solution intercalation was independent of polymer molecular weight in the range 300–20 000. Furthermore, the clay expansion was independent of the method of intercalation; melt intercalation also gave d 001 = 1.82 nm irrespective of polymer molecular weight. The maximum amount of polymer intercalated by clay and the maximum loading of clay that polymer can sustain were also studied for the determination of nanocomposite formulations. The confined polymer exerts a reduced effective density (670 kg m −3 ) in the galleries. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry