It is described about polymer/clay nanocomposites which can be abbreviated to PCNC, their preparation methods, properties and relevances, important types of polymers employed in the preparation of PCNC, montmorillonite crystal structures,

1. CLAY BASED POLYMER
NANOCOMPOSITES
JISHANA BASHEER
POLYMER ENGG:
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF
ENGG: THODUPUZHA

2. CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
DEFINITION OF TERMS
NANOCOMPOSITES
POLYMER/CLAY NANOCOMPOSITES (PCNC)
PCNC STRUCTURES
PREPARATION METHODS FOR PCNC
PROPERTIES OF PCNC
CONCLUSION

3. INTRODUCTION
• Polymer Clay Nano Composites are a new class of
composites that consists of dispersed particles in
a polymer matrix.
• They are of interest as a result of their wide range
of novel physical properties.
• The reinforcing filler material for a polymer-matrix
nanocomposites can be made up of particles,
fibers or sheets.

4. DEFINITION OF TERMS
• COMPOSITES: Made up of multiple components,
compound or complex substances.
• NANOTECHNOLOGY: Science and technology of
creating particles & of manufacturing machines which
have sizes within nanometer range.
• NANOPARTICLES: Particles between 1 and 100
nanometers in size.
• POLYMER

5. NANOCOMPOSITES
• Nanocomposite is a multiphase solid material
where one of the phases has dimensions of about
1-100 nanometers (nm).
• Solid combination of a bulk matrix and nano-
dimensional phase(s).
• Three major matrix material used in the
nanocomposites formation – metal, ceramic and
polymer.

6. METAL MATRIX CERAMIC MATRIX
POLYMER MATRIX

7. POLYMER/CLAY NANOCOMPOSITES
• Polymer nanocomposites are two-phase materials
in which the polymers are reinforced by nanoscale
fillers.
• The most heavily used filler material is based on
the smectite class of aluminum silicate clays, of
which the most common representative is
montmorillonite(MMT).
• This hybrid composition exhibit large increases in
tensile strength, modulus, and heat distortion
temperature.

8. POLYMERS IN POLYMER/CLAY
NANOCOMPOSITES
GENERAL – PURPOSE POLYMERS :
 These polymers are characterized by being used in
low-cost applications. eg: PE, PP, PVC
ENGINEERING PLASTICS:
 These polymers are used in engineering
applications, as gear and structural parts.
eg:Polyamide, Polysulfone, Polycarbonate.

9. CONDUCTIVE POLYMERS:
 The conductive polymer conductivity is dependent on
the polymer chains ordering that can be achieved by
the nanocomposite formation.
eg:Polyaniline(PANI),Polyethylene oxide (PEO)
BIODEGRADABLE POLYMERS:
 Some polymers have low properties and because of
this, improvements should be performed. One of the
ways to improve the properties is by preparing
nanocomposites.
eg: Polyhydroxibutirate (PHB)

10. CRYSTAL STRUCTURE OF MMT

11. DISPERSION OF CLAY PLATELETS
Complete dispersion of clay platelets in a monomer
or polymer matrix involves three steps, such as;
 Wetting the surface of clay platelets by
monomer or polymer molecules.
 Intercalation of the monomer into the clay galleries.
 Exfoliation of clay layers.

12. POSSIBLE TYPES OF POLYMER/CLAY
NANOCOMPOSITES STRUCTURES

13. PREPARATION METHODS
1. SOLUTION - BLENDING METHOD

14. 2. MELT BLENDING METHOD

15. 3. IN-SITU POLYMERISATION METHOD

16. PROPERTIES OF POLYMER/CLAY
NANOCOMPOSITES
1. MECHANICAL BEHAVIOUR
• Enhancement in mechanical properties.
• The first commercial example of polymeric
nanocomposites in automotive applications was
clay–nylon-6 nanocomposites.
• Creep and fatigue properties have drastically led to
the overall improvement of the mechanical
performance of automobiles.

17. 2. FIRE - RETARDANT BEHAVIOUR
• Enhancements in flame retardancy property in
polymers such as PP, PS, N6 was achieved in the
presence of clay.
• Clays appear to help nanocomposite to form char
and this char acts as an insulative layer.
• Fire retardant coatings, rocket propulsion
insulation, rocket nozzle, etc

18. 3. BARRIER PROPERTIES
• Organically modified clays dispersed in nylon-6-
polymer matrix greatly improved the dimensional
stability and the barrier properties.
• Improvement in barrier resistance in
nanocomposites plays an important role in
beverage applications.
• Nanocomposite packaging films made in
polyethylene terephthalate (PET) have been
studied as replacements for conventional
polymer films.

19. 4.THERMAL STABILITY
• The improved thermal stability in polymer
nanocomposites is due to the clay platelets which
hinder the diffusion of volatiles and assist the
formation of char after thermal decomposition.
• For space applications, some critical issues are
important, such as temperature extremes
toughness, dimensional stability (i.e., resistance to
microcracking), etc.

20. 5.ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY
• Clay minerals exhibit unique electrical properties,
which is mainly attributed to their ionic
conductivity.
• Although the clay layers can be regarded as
insulators, the hydrated interlayer cations and their
mobility ensure a significant ionic conductivity of
the system.
• The nanocomposite has to enhance the stability of
the ionic conductivity at lower temperature.

21. 6.BIODEGRADABILITY
• Improved biodegradability of nanocomposites made
from organoclay and biodegradable polymers.
• TOYOTA Technological Institute is commercializing
layered silicate nanocomposites for packaging
materials and also for short-term disposable
applications.

22. CONCLUSION
• The current state of research of PCNCs, preparation
methods, properties and applications were
described.
• The development of Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites
is now a rapidly expanding multidisciplinary global
research activity.
• It has become apparent that nanoscale
reinforcement is an attractive way of improving the
properties and stability of polymers.

23. REFERENCES
• Structure and properties of polymer clay
Nanocomposites: A Review by Aniagbaoso Ikenna
Kingsley.
• An Overview of Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites by
Ravi Babu Valapa, Sravanthi Loganathan, G.
Pugazhenthi, Sabu Thomas and T.O. Varghese.
• Clay/Polymer Nanocomposites edited by Khouloud
Jlassi, Mohamed M. Chehimi, Sabu Thomas.

24. • Properties and applications of polymer – clay
nanocomposites by Ľudmila Dulebová, PhD, Tomasz
Jachowicz, PhD, Branislav Duleba, PhD.
• Clay-Based Polymer Nanocomposites: Research and
Commercial Development by Q. H. Zeng, A. B. Yu, G.
Q. (Max) Lu, and D. R. Paul.
• Preparation of Polymer–Clay Nanocomposites and
Their Properties by Quang T.Nguyen, Donald G.Baird.
• Polymer/ Clay Nanocomposites: Concepts,
Researches, Applications and Trends for The Future
by Priscila Anadao