Purificação e organofilização de argilas bentonitas para uso em nanocompósitos poliméricos.

Abstract

Nowadays the clays represent an important segment in several different industries. The increased demands of these materials are widely known and have prompted the appearance of new field applications based on their characteristics and properties. Their easy extraction and low cost support continuous researches to diversify their use. The newest result of these investigations is the use of these clays to manufacture polymer nanocomposites, i.e., hydbrid polymer/clay systems which display improved properties, if compared with the neat polymer, at low loading levels (<5%). The challenge is to guarantee that these properties will be maintained during the material lifecycle. Therefore, clay impurities, which can cause premature polymer degradation, must be removed if quality nanocomposites are to be obtained. In this work different ways to select and purify bentonites clays to be used as reinforcing fillers in polymer nanocomposites were investigated. Two different methods of purification were used, isolated or combined, and the resulting purified clays were organically modified and incorporated into a polymet matrix. The nanocomposites, organofilic and natural clays, purified or not, were caracterizated.