The influence of intercalation rate and degree of substitution on the electrorheological activity of a novel ternary intercalated nanocomposite

Kaolinite/dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO)/carboxymethyl starch (CMS) ternary nanocomposites were prepared according to the combination of intercalation and solution reaction. The results show that the intercalation rate (IR) of kaolinite in the ternary composite is adjusted by changing the mass rate, and the basal spacing of kaolinite was swelled from 0.715 to 1.120 nm. At the suitable component ratio of ternary nanocomposite, the optimum electrorheological (ER) effect can be attained. It is apparent that the notable ER effect of ternary ER fluid was attributed to the prominent dielectric property of the ternary nanocomposite electrorheological fluids (ERF), which is closely associated with the IR. With the increase of degree of substitution, the ER effect of ternary composite ERF is enhanced. (C) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.