Journal of Polymer Research

, 23:25 | Cite as

Morphology, thermal and mechanical properties of polypropylene/SiO2 nanocomposites obtained by reactive blending

  • Magdalena Grala
  • Zbigniew Bartczak
  • Artur Różański
Original Paper
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

The isotactic polypropylene – modified silica (iPP/SiO2) hybrid nanocomposites, obtained by grafting polypropylene chains on amine-functionalized silica particles during reactive blending, were studied. It was found that use of amine-functionalized silica and PP-g-MA as a compatibilizer improved dispersion of nanoparticles. Nanosilica, especially surface-modified, revealed some nucleation activity towards iPP, manifesting in an increase of the crystallization temperature and reduction of spherulite size. iPP/silica nanocomposites exhibit highly improved thermo-oxidative stability, due to formation of a silica protective layer, limiting the polymer volatilization rate. Nanocomposites demonstrate enhanced stiffness and strength, but at higher silica content the ductility is nearly lost due to presence of big agglomerates, acting as critical-sized structural flaws. At low silica concentrations dispersion was improved and big agglomerates were not observed. Consequently, iPP/PP-g-MA/am-SiO2 nanocomposites with low silica content demonstrate high ductility and enhanced impact resistance, related to reinforcing effect of well dispersed silica particles.

Keywords

Polypropylene Silica SiO2 Hybrid nanocomposite Mechanical properties 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

References

  1. 1.
    Paul DR, Robeson LM (2008) Polymer nanotechnology: nanocomposites. Polymer 49(15):3187–3204CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  2. 2.
    Njuguna J, Pielichowski K, Desai S (2008) Nanofiller-reinforced polymer nanocomposites. Polym Adv Technol 19(8):947–959CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. 3.
    Pavlidou S, Papaspyrides CD (2008) A review on polymer–layered silicate nanocomposites. Prog Polym Sci 33(12):1119–1198CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  4. 4.
    Zhang MQ, Rong MZ, Ruan WH (2009) Nanoparticles/polymer composites: fabrication and mechanical properties. In: Karger-Kocsis J, Fakirov S (eds) Nano- and micro-mechanics of polymer blends and composites. Hanser, Munich, pp. 93–140Google Scholar
  5. 5.
    Zou H, Wu S, Shen J (2008) Polymer/silica nanocomposites: preparation, characterization, properties, and applications. Chem Rev 108(9):3893–3957CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  6. 6.
    Sun LY, Gibson RF, Gordaninejad F, Suhr J (2009) Energy absorption capability of nanocomposites: a review. Compos Sci Technol 69(14):2392–2409CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. 7.
    Choudalakis G, Gotsis AD (2009) Permeability of polymer/clay nanocomposites: a review. Eur Polym J 45(4):967–984CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  8. 8.
    Zhao C, Qin H, Gong F, Feng M, Zhang S, Yang M (2005) Mechanical, thermal and flammability properties of polyethylene/clay nanocomposites. Polym Degrad Stab 87(1):183–189CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  9. 9.
    Michler GH, Balta-Calleja FJ (2012) Nano- and micromechanics of polymers. Carl Hanser Verlag, MunichCrossRefGoogle Scholar
  10. 10.
    Iler RK (1979) The chemistry of silica. Wiley, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  11. 11.
    Kim HC, Dubois G (2005) Dekker encyclopedia of nanoscience and nanotechnology. Taylor & Francis, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  12. 12.
    Jana SC, Jain S (2001) Dispersion of nanofillers in high performance polymers using reactive solvents as processing aids. Polymer 42:6897–6905CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. 13.
    Nalwa HS (ed) (2003) Handbook of organic-inorganic hybrid materials and nanocomposites. American Scientific Publishers, Stevenson RanchGoogle Scholar
  14. 14.
    Pegoretti A (2009) Creep and fatigue behaviour of polymer nanocomposites. In: Karger-Kocsis J, Fakirov S (eds) Nano- and micro-mechanics of polymer blends and composites. Hanser, Munich, pp. 301–339CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  15. 15.
    Wu CL, Zhang MQ, Rong MZ, Friedrich K (2002) Tensile performance improvement of low nanoparticles filled-polypropylene composites. Compos Sci Technol 62(10–11):1327–1340CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  16. 16.
    Bikiaris DN, Vassiliou A, Pavlidou E, Karayannidis GP (2005) Compatibilisation effect of PP-g-MA copolymer on iPP/SiO2 nanocomposites prepared by melt mixing. Eur Polym J 41(9):1965–1978CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  17. 17.
    Bikiaris DN, Papageorgiou GZ, Pavlidou E, Vouroutzis N, Palatzoglou P, Karayannidis GP (2006) Preparation bv melt mixing and characterization of isotactic polypropylene/SiO2 nanocomposites containing untreated and surface-treated nanoparticles. J Appl Polym Sci 100(4):2684–2696CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  18. 18.
    Bouaziz A, Jaziri M, Dalmas F, Massardier V (2014) Nanocomposites of silica reinforced polypropylene: correlation between morphology and properties. Polym Eng Sci 54(9):2187–2196CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  19. 19.
    Chen JH, Rong MZ, Ruan WH, Zhang MQ (2009) Interfacial enhancement of nano-SiO2/polypropylene composites. Compos Sci Technol 69(2):252–259CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  20. 20.
    Lin OH, Mohd Ishak ZA, Akil HM (2009) Preparation and properties of nanosilica-filled polypropylene composites with PP-methyl POSS as compatibiliser. Mater Des 30(3):748–751CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  21. 21.
    Rong MZ, Zhang MQ, Pan SL, Friedrich K (2004) Interfacial effects in polypropylene-silica nanocomposites. J Appl Polym Sci 92(3):1771–1781CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  22. 22.
    Studziński M, Jeziórska R, Szadkowska A, Zielecka M (2014) Modified nanosilica-filled polypropylene composites with glycidyl methacrylate grafted ethylene/n-octene copolymer as compatibilizer. Polimery 59:625–635CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  23. 23.
    Garcia M, van Vliet G, Jain S, Schrauwen BAG, Sarkissov A, van Zyl WE, Boukamp B (2004) Polypropylene/SiO2 nanocomposites with improved mechanical properties. Rev Adv Mater Sci 6(2):169–175Google Scholar
  24. 24.
    Papageorgiou DG, Vourlias G, Bikiaris DN, Chrissafis K (2014) Effect of silica nanoparticles modification on the thermal, structural, and decomposition properties of a β-nucleated poly(propylene-co-ethylene) matrix. Macromol Chem Phys 215(9):839–850CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  25. 25.
    Pavlidou E, Bikiaris D, Vassiliou A, Chiotelli M, Karayannidis G (2005) Mechanical properties and morphological examination of isotactic polypropylene/SiO2 nanocomposites containing PP-g-MA as compatibilizer. J Phys Conf Ser 10(1):190–193CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  26. 26.
    Zhou RJ, Burkhart T (2011) Polypropylene/SiO2 nanocomposites filled with different nanosilicas: thermal and mechanical properties, morphology and interphase characterization. J Mater Sci 46(5):1228–1238CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  27. 27.
    Zoukrami F, Haddaoui N, Vanzeveren C, Sclavons M, Devaux J (2008) Effect of compatibilizer on the dispersion of untreated silica in a polypropylene matrix. Polym Int 57(5):756–763CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  28. 28.
    Taniike T, Toyonaga M, Terano M (2014) Polypropylene - grafted nanoparticles as a promising strategy for boosting physical properties of polypropylene-based nanocomposites. Polymer 55(4):1012–1019CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  29. 29.
    Karian HG (ed) (2003) Handbook of polypropylene and polypropylene composites. Plastics Engineering. Marcel Dekker, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  30. 30.
    Rong MZ, Zhang MQ, Zheng YX, Zeng HM, Walter R, Friedrich K (2001) Structure–property relationships of irradiation grafted nano-inorganic particle filled polypropylene composites. Polymer 42(1):167–183CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  31. 31.
    Boyer C, Boutevin B, Robin JJ (2005) Study of the synthesis of graft copolymers by a reactive process. Influence of the copolymer structure on the adhesion of polypropylene onto poly(vinylidene fluoride). Polym Degrad Stab 90(2):326–339CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  32. 32.
    Fina A, Tabuani D, Peijs T, Camino G (2009) POSS grafting on PPgMA by one-step reactive blending. Polymer 50(1):218–226CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  33. 33.
    Fina A, Monticelli O, Camino G (2010) POSS-based hybrids by melt/reactive blending. J Mater Chem 20(42):9297–9305CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  34. 34.
    Grala M, Bartczak Z, Pracella M (2013) Morphology and mechanical properties of polypropylene-POSS hybrid nanocomposites obtained by reactive blending. Polym Compos 34(6):929–941CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  35. 35.
    Krigbaum WR, Uematsu I (1965) Heat and entropy of fusion of isotactic polypropylene. J Polym Sci A Polym Chem 3(2):767–776Google Scholar
  36. 36.
    Wojdyr M (2010) Fityk: a general-purpose peak fitting program. J Appl Crystallogr 43:1126–1128CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  37. 37.
    Turner-Jones A, Aizlewood JM, Beckett DR (1964) Macromol Chem 75:134–158CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  38. 38.
    Alexander LE (1969) X-ray diffraction methods in polymer science. Wiley-Interscience, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  39. 39.
    Kurth DG, Bein T (1992) Quantification of the reactivity of 3-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane monolayers with the quartz-crystal microbalance. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 31(3):336–338CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  40. 40.
    Kurth DG, Bein T (1993) Surface reactions on thin layers of silane coupling agents. Langmuir 9(11):2965–2973CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  41. 41.
    Ek S, Iiskola EI, Niinistö L (2004) Atomic layer deposition of amino-functionalized silica surfaces using N-(2-aminoethyl)-3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane as a silylating agent. J Phys Chem B 108(28):9650–9655CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  42. 42.
    Sen T, Bruce IJ (2012) Surface engineering of nanoparticles in suspension for particle based bio-sensing. Sci Report 2:564CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  43. 43.
    van de Waterbeemd M, Sen T, Biagini S, Bruce IJ (2010) Surface functionalisation of magnetic nanoparticles: quantification of surface to bulk amine density. Micro Nano Lett 5(5):282CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  44. 44.
    Bruce IJ, Sen T (2005) Surface modification of magnetic nanoparticles with alkoxysilanes and their application in magnetic bioseparations. Langmuir 21(15):7029–7035CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  45. 45.
    Choi S-H, Cai Y, Newby B-MZ (2007) Stability Enhancement Of Polystyrene Thin Films On Aminopropyltriethoxysilane Ultrathin Layer Modified Surfaces. In: Silanes and Other Coupling Agents, Volume 4.Google Scholar
  46. 46.
    Wåhlander M, Nilsson F, Larsson E, Tsai W-C, Hillborg H, Carlmark A, Gedde UW, Malmström E (2014) Polymer-grafted Al2O3-nanoparticles for controlled dispersion in poly(ethylene-co-butyl acrylate) nanocomposites. Polymer 55(9):2125–2138CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  47. 47.
    van Blaaderen A, Vrij A (1993) Synthesis and characterization of monodisperse colloidal organo-silica spheres. J Colloid Interface Sci 156(1):1–18CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  48. 48.
    Pedrazzoli D, Pegoretti A, Kalaitzidou K (2015) Understanding the effect of silica nanoparticles and exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets on the crystallization behavior of isotactic polypropylene. Polym Eng Sci 55(3):672–680CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  49. 49.
    Grassie N, Scott G (1985) Polymer degradation and stabilization. Cambridge University Press, CambridgeGoogle Scholar
  50. 50.
    Fina A, Tabuani D, Carniato F, Frache A, Boccaleri E, Camino G (2006) Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSS) thermal degradation. Thermochim Acta 440(1):36–42CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  51. 51.
    Pawlak A, Galeski A, Rozanski A (2014) Cavitation during deformation of semicrystalline polymers. Prog Polym Sci 39(5):921–958CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  52. 52.
    Dorigato A, Dzenis Y, Pegoretti A (2013) Filler aggregation as a reinforcement mechanism in polymer nanocomposites. Mech Mater 61:79–90CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  53. 53.
    Ahmed S, Jones FR (1990) A review of particluate reinforcement theories for polymer composites. J Mater Sci 25:4933–4942CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  54. 54.
    Nielsen LE, Landel RF (1994) Mechanical properties of polymers and composites. M. Dekker, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  55. 55.
    Nicolais L, Nicodemo L (1973) Strength of particulate composite. Polym Eng Sci 13:469–477CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  56. 56.
    Galeski A (2003) Strength and toughness of crystalline polymer systems. Prog Polym Sci 28(12):1643–1699CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  57. 57.
    Brooks NWJ, Mukhtar M (2000) Temperature and stem length dependence of the yield stress of polyethylene. Polymer 41:1475–1480CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  58. 58.
    Dorigato A, D’Amato M, Pegoretti A (2012) Thermo-mechanical properties of high density polyethylene – fumed silica nanocomposites: effect of filler surface area and treatment. J Polym Res 19(6)Google Scholar
  59. 59.
    Kontou E, Niaounakis M (2006) Thermo-mechanical properties of LLDPE/SiO2 nanocomposites. Polymer 47(4):1267–1280CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  60. 60.
    Boyd RH (1985) Relaxation processes in crystalline polymers: experimental behaviour — a review. Polymer 26(3):323–347CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  61. 61.
    Boyd RH (1985) Relaxation processes in crystalline polymers: molecular interpretation — a review. Polymer 26(8):1123–1133CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  62. 62.
    Bartczak Z, Galeski A (2014) Mechanical properties of polymer blends. In: Utracki LA, Wilkie CA (eds) Polymer blends handbook, vol 2, 2nd edn. Springer Science+Business Media, Dordrecht, pp. 1203–1297Google Scholar

Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • Magdalena Grala
    • 1
  • Zbigniew Bartczak
    • 1
  • Artur Różański
    • 1
  1. 1.Centre of Molecular and Macromolecular StudiesPolish Academy of SciencesLodzPoland

Personalised recommendations