Nanocomposite materials composed of poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and montmorillonite (MMT) clays were prepared by in situ polymerization. Samples consisted of PET blended with various quantities of either pristine (Na+‐MMT) or organically modified MMT (A10‐MMT). The morphology and thermal and mechanical properties were evaluated for each sample. TEM micrographs, acquired at a 20 nm resolution, provide direct evidence of exfoliation of the clay particles into the PET matrix and show the effect of the alkyl‐modifier on clay dispersibility. The dispersion of PET/A10‐MMT was greater than that observed for the PET/Na+‐MMT nanocomposites. The greatest degree of exfoliation occurred for PET/A10‐MMT 0.5 wt %. However, PET/Na+‐MMT exhibited higher crystallization temperatures and rates suggesting that Na+‐MMT is a more efficient nucleating agent. Both mechanically and thermally, PET/A10‐MMT nanocomposites exhibited superior properties over pure PET.
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Hwang et al. (2008) studied this question.
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