Novel synergistic combinations of amphiphilic fatty acid derivatives for high-performance rubber–organoclay nanocomposites

Abstract

We report on the synergistic binary combination of amphiphilic fatty acids and their derivatives (FADs), which remarkably enhance the mechanical and thermal properties of cross-linked ethylene–propylene–diene monomer (EPDM)–organoclay nanocomposite as well as the melt processability of its non-crosslinked counterpart. The binary FAD mixture is composed of a stearic acid derivative (SAD) that preferentially increases the gallery gap of organoclays and a vegetable oil that mainly improves the dispersion of SAD-modified organoclays in the rubber matrix. The synergism between two FADs increases as both FAD components become more compatible with rubber matrix within the limit that the SAD component has a good affinity to organoclay enough to infiltrate into the gallery gap of organoclay and wet the surface of organoclay. Such outstanding performance enhancement has been achieved even at a very low loading level of organoclay simply by the incorporation of a suitable mixture of commercial-grade FADs during the traditional rubber compounding process. Therefore, we illustrate a novel and facile method to prepare a high-performance rubber nanocomposite with wide-ranging commercial benefits, without compromising the intrinsic advantages of rubber materials such as lightweight, optical transparency, high ductility and flexibility.