The influence of waste rubber on thermal and mechanical characteristics of polyamide 12/OMMT nanocomposite for a variety of applications

The influence of waste rubber on the thermal stability and mechanical properties of polyamide 12 and its nanocomposites is investigated. Organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT), ethylene-propylene diene monomer (EPDM, also referred to as waste rubber), and a polyamide 12 matrix with low melting viscosity and low water absorption are used in this study. The goal is to reduce the amount of scrap rubber in stockpiles for environmental safety. The mechanical test results indicate that higher wt% EPDM to functions as stress concentrator, demonstrating that increased EPDM content diminishes strength and ductility, suggesting inadequate interfacial bonding or particle agglomeration. The incorporation of EPDM diminishes the crystallinity of all ternary composites, but stabilizes the melting point as revealed by DSC. The band at 1,146 cm −1 is due to C–N vibration, and the 1,227 cm −1 band is due to C=N stretching, thereby increasing peak intensities. These peaks appeared when EPDM was injected into the binary nanocomposites, suggesting that it was evenly distributed throughout the PA12/OMMT nanocomposite. The study also found that adding EPDM to PA12/OMMT increases viscosity. However, the Young’s modulus decreased in all cases except for the ternary nanocomposite containing 10 % EPDM.