Role of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes Localization on Morphology Development of PMMA/PS/PP Ternary Blends

Abstract

In this work, we studied the parameters affecting the localization of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and its impact on morphology development of poly(methyl methacrylate)/polystyrene/polypropylene (PMMA/PS/PP) ternary blends, which originally have a thermodynamically preferred core-shell type morphology. We compared the results with the morphological prediction based on the thermodynamic approach. The MWCNTs localization and morphological features of nanocomposite samples were studied by means of melt linear viscoelastic experiments together with electron microscopy results. It was found that at 0.5 wt% of MWCNTs the original core-shell type morphology of the ternary blend samples almost remained intact. and this observation was independent of the sequence of feeding. At 1 wt% of MWCNTs, the core-shell morphology was retained only for those nanocomposite samples prepared using the sequential feeding mode. In addition, it was demonstrated that the thermodynamic predictions could be utilized for the nanocomposites containing low MWCNTs contents. However, this was not true for the nanocomposites with higher MWCNTs contents due to the predominating role of viscoelastic properties of the PS shell. C 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Adv Polym Technol 2016; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com.

Unraveling the localization behavior of MWCNTs in binary polymer blends using thermodynamics and viscoelastic approaches

“…Nevertheless, DMA analysis is not sufficiently sensitive to differentiate these effects. With MWCNTs filled nanocomposites, specifically, a minor increase has been reported .…”

“…Conversely, the localization of MWCNTs in dispersed droplets was confirmed to have little effect on the storage modulus at low frequencies, and the elastic response produced is merely due to droplet shape deformation. It thus follows that melt linear viscoelastic experiments can provide great insight into the localization of nanofillers in immiscible blends .…”

“…This means additional energy dissipation and a decrease in the damping factor (tan δ ) peak area (height), which is correspondingly larger for the blend component containing more of the nanofillers. The changes on the addition of nanofillers can be traced by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) technique, which is a powerful characterization tool to understand the dynamic response of MWCNTs filled polymer blends .…”

Microstructure effects on the rheology of nanoclay‐filled PHB/LDPE blends

“…However, the efficiency of nanoclays in reducing the interfacial tension and stabilization of a dispersed phase depends on localization and intercalation level [1,3,4] The morphological and microstructural features determine the rheological behavior and the resulting physical and mechanical properties [5]. Final localization of nanoparticles is dictated by the winner of the competition between hydrodynamic forces and thermodynamic preference [3,6].…”

Role of nanosilica localization on morphology development of HDPE/PS/PMMA immiscible ternary blends

“…This stems from the fact that the addition of nanofiller into immiscible polymer blends has proved to be an efficient method to develop a new family of polymer nanocomposites with a great tailoring potential for producing products with combination of prescribed properties. In this context the localization of nanoparticles has been found to play an important role in determining the resulting morphologies of polymer blends [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. This is why a considerable number of studies have been directed toward understanding parameters controlling the nanoparticle localization in polymer blends.…”