Strategies for Intercalation and Exfoliation of PP/Clay Nanocomposites

This research investigated the intercalation and exfoliation behaviors of polypropylene (PP)/clay nanocomposites. Different samples were prepared by melt blending with various combinations of PP, maleic anhydride grafted PP (PP-g-MAn), and nano-clay. The effects of key processing variables such as the mixing time, mixing temperature and screw rpm were investigated from the thermodynamic and kinetic point of view. The morphology was determined by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Effective strategies for controlling intercalation and exfoliation of PP/clay nanocomposites are proposed and evaluated.