Biobased Cyanate Ester Composites with Epoxidized Soybean Oil and In Situ Generated Nano-Silica

Biobased cyanate ester (CE) nanocomposites have been prepared from renewable resource, epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) and in situ generated nano-silica via sol gel process. The isothermal curing process was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and rheometry. The results indicate that the incorporation of silica accelerates the reaction at the beginning stage of curing process but descends the final isothermal curing conversion. The morphological study of nanocomposites by scanning electron microscope and transmission electron microscope suggests that the silica exists in the forms of both nanoparticles and silica networks, while the diameter of ESO-rich phase diminished with the increase of silica loading. In addition, the thermal physical and mechanical properties were evaluated by dynamic mechanical analysis, thermogravimetric analysis, and tensile mechanical test. The biobased CE nanocomposites show effectively improved properties compared to the systems without nano-silica. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 51:426-433, 2011. (C) 2010 Society of Plastics Engineers