A Comparative Study of Polystyrene/Layered Silicate Nanocomposites, Synthesized by Emulsion and Bulk Polymerization Methods

Abstract

Polystyrene/clay (PS/clay) nanocomposites were synthesized by insitu emulsion and bulk polymerization methods. Sodium montmorillonite (Na-MMT) and two organically modified clays (Cloisite 30B and Cloisite 15A) were employed. The effect of clay swelling method and sonication on the d-spacing of silicate layers was also investigated. The surface morphology of pure PS and PS/clay nanocomposites were comparatively investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of PS and PS/clay nanocomposites revealed the improved thermal stability of PS/clay nanocomposites compared to pure PS. Results of optical transparency tests showed the better transparency of nanocomposite films compared to the pure PS film.

Keywords:

• Clay
• Nanocomposite
• Polystyrene

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thank Department of Physics in the University of Tabriz for XRD analysis, Tarbiat Modarres University for SEM images and also Sahand University of Technology for TGA analysis. Authors also greatly acknowledge the University of Tabriz for the financial supports of this work.

Notes

^a 15% degradation temperature (T_0.15).

^b 50% degradation temperature (T_0.5).