Journal
POLYMER
Volume 73, Issue -, Pages 102-110Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2015.07.042
Keywords
Rheology; Thermal degradation; Thermo-oxidative degradation; Polyamide 11; Nanocomposite; Organo-clay; MALDI-TOF
Categories
Funding
- FIRB 20100-Futuro in ricerca project - Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR) [RBFR10DCS7]
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Thermal and thermo-oxidative degradation of nanocomposites based on polyamide 11 (PA11) and organo-modified clay (Cloisite (R) 30B) are studied in the melt state (T = 215 degrees C) via time-resolved mechanical spectroscopy (TRMS). The goal is assessing the potentiality of rheological analysis for studying polymer degradation in complex systems such as polymer nanocomposites, whose rheological response stems from the combination of the contributions of polymer and nanoparticles. We prove that a thorough analysis grounded on TRMS allows to isolate the effect of degradation of the polymer matrix, whose progress can be hence profitably monitored. Essentially the same degradation mechanisms as in neat PA11 are identified for the nanocomposite, but the kinetics of the thermo-oxidation processes are much faster in the presence of organo-clay. In particular, rheology promptly identifies cross-linking reactions since the early stage of the treatment in air. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization and oxidative induction time measurements corroborate the conclusions drawn on the basis of rheological analyses, shedding light on the chemical aspects of PA11 degradation. Overall, rheological analysis confirms to be a valuable tool for monitoring polymer degradation even in case of inherently complex systems such as nanocomposites. In this case, however, the analysis can be difficult if the dynamics of the nanoparticles prevail over those of the polymer matrix, which is the case of nanocomposites at high filler contents. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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