Nanoclay dispersion into a thermosetting binder using sonication and intensive mixing methods

Havva Tutar Kahraman, Halil Gevgilili, Dilhan M. Kalyon, Erol Pehlivan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

Suspensions of epoxy with 10% by weight of organomodified montmorillonite clay [Cloisite 30B], prepared by two different methods, viz. intensive batch mixing and sonication, were investigated. The characterization of linear viscoelastic material functions of the suspension using small-amplitude oscillatory shear during processing enabled the assessments of the dispersion capabilities of the two mixing methods. Thermal imaging was used to monitor the temperature distributions generated during mixing. Sonication was determined to be more effective in the dispersion of the clay into the epoxy resin than the intensive batch mixing process, as revealed by the significant increase of the dynamic properties upon sonication, which suggested that some degree of intercalation and exfoliation had taken place during sonication. The use of the linear viscoelastic material functions thus provided a relatively easy to implement method for the analysis of the dispersion effectiveness of the different processing methods and operating conditions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1773-1783
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Applied Polymer Science
Volume129
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 15 Aug 2013

Keywords

  • clay
  • epoxy
  • intensive mixing
  • rheology
  • sonication
  • thermosets
  • viscosity and viscoelasticity

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Nanoclay dispersion into a thermosetting binder using sonication and intensive mixing methods'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this