Rheological and dynamic mechanical properties of polymer-bonded magnets based on Sm2Co17 and polyamide-12

The rheological and dynamic mechanical properties of polymer-based composites of Sm2Co17 and polyamide-12 with different particle loadings, sizes, and surface treatments are reported. Sm2Co17 particles were surface-treated with three different silanes: 3-glycidoxy(propyl)trimethoxysilane, 3-amino(propyl)trimethoxysilane (APTMS), and methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS). It was shown, for the composites with untreated particles, that the viscosity and storage modulus increased with increasing filler content (0-60 vol%) and decreasing filler particle size. In addition, the glass transition temperature increased significantly and the damping decreased with increasing filler content. Of the silanes, the MTMS, which yielded only a thin surface layer, had in general the least effect on the rheological properties of the composite. The composite containing the APTMS-coated filler showed the highest storage modulus. The results give new insights on how to prepare polymer-bonded magnets with optimal process conditions (rheology) and dynamic mechanical properties, by varying the amount of particles, their size, and surface treatment.