Solid State Intercalation of 4,4′-Bipyridine into the Interlayer Space of Montmorillonites

Abstract

Intercalation of 4,4′-bipyridine into the interlayer spaces of cobalt(II), nickel(II) and copper(II)-montmorillonites by solid-solid reactions was investigated. The successful intercalation of 4,4′-bipyridine and the complex formation in the interlayer spaces of montmorillonites was confirmed by powder XRD (the change in the basal spacings) as well as IR and the thermal analysis of the products.     

Structure and Mechanical Properties of 50/50 NR/SBR Blend/Pristine Clay Nanocomposites

A blend/clay nanocomposites of 50/50 (wt%) NR/SBR was prepared via mixing the latex of a 50/50 NR/SBR blend with an aqueous clay dispersion and co‐coagulating the mixture. The structure of the nanocomposite was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Nanocomposites containing less than 10 phr clay showed a fully exfoliated structure. After increasing the clay content to 10 phr, both nonexfoliated (stacked layers) and exfoliated structures were observed in the nanocomposites. The results of mechanical tests showed that the nanocomposites presented better mechanical properties than clay‐free NR/SBR blend vulcanizate. Furthermore, tensile strength, tensile strain at break, and hardness (shore A) increased with increasing clay content, up to 6 phr, and then remained almost constant.     

A molecular dynamics study of the swelling patterns of Na/Cs-montmorillonites and the hydration of interlayer cations

We report on a molecular dynamics study of the swelling patterns of an Na-rich/Cs-poor montomorillonite and a Csmontomorillonite.The recently developed CLAYFF force field is used to predict the basal spacing as a function of the water content in the interlayer.The simulations reproduce the swelling patterns of the Na and Cs-montomorillonite,suggesting a mechanism of its hydration different from that of the montomorillonite.In addition,we find that the differences in size and hydration energy of Na and Cs ions have strong implications for the structure and the internal energy of interlayer water.In particular,our results indicate that the hydrate difference in the presence of coexistent Na and Cs has a larger influence on the behavior of a clay-water system.For Na-rich/Cs-poor montomorillonite,the hydration energy values of Na ions and water molecules each have a dramatic increase compared with those in Na-montomorillonite on the interlayer spacing,and the hydration energy values of Cs ions and water molecules decrease somewhat compared with those in Cs-montomorillonite.     

Study of Water States in Different Hydrated and Consolidated Clay Using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

ABSTRACT

The aim of the present work was to test low-resolution NMR to characterize and quantify the state of water in some clay materials such as illite, montmorillonite, and bentonite with water content and in a compacted state. Low-field ¹H-NMR spectroscopy (0.54 T) was used to determine the most mobile fraction of water in different types of clay materials by analyzing free induction decay (FID) and Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) relaxation curves at 20°C, ?7°C, and ?25°C. Results have shown that a fast exchange occurs between the first bound monolayer of water and the following ones for illite, montmorillonite, and bentonite; a multiexponential decay of some CPMG relaxation curves was also observed. FID measurements at ?25°C showed that 83% of the water in illite (41% water content), 44% in montmorillonite (31% w.c.), and 52% in bentonite (27% w.c.) is frozen at this temperature. Treatment of signals obtained with bentonite compacted in capillaries (28% w.c.) was complicated by a signal coming from the capillaries themselves and an increase in internal magnetic field gradients, which led to a dual quantification whose most likely result is 39% of freezable water.     

Preparation and Flammability of a Flame-Retardant Poly(Butyl Acrylate-Vinyl Acetate) System Based on Gemin-Surfactant Modified Montmorillonite and Ammonium Polyphosphate

Gemin-surfactant modified montmorillonite (G-MMT) was successfully prepared by an ion exchange reaction and characterized via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The P(BA-VAc)/G-MMT emulsion was prepared via an in-situ polymerization method using potassium persulfate (K₂S₂O₈, KPS) as an initiator. Ammonium polyphosphate (APP) was introduced for obtaining P(BA-VAc)/APP/G-MMT flame-retardant latex with a constant total content of 15 wt% of APP and G-MMT in P(BA-VAc). The flame retardancy and thermal behavior of the latex films were investigated by limiting oxygen index (LOI), vertical burning test (UL-94) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TG/DTA). Compared with the P(BA-VAc)/APP composite, the LOI value of P(BA-VAc)/APP/G-MMT containing 0.5 wt% G-MMT at the same total additive loading increased to 29.1 from 20.0 and its UL-94 increased from no rating to V-0. Thermal gravimetric (TG) data showed that the amount of residues increased significantly with the loading of G-MMT. In addition, the LOI values increased with the increase in char residues. The morphology and microstructure of the residues generated during LOI testing were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The outer surfaces of P(BA-VAc)/APP/G-MMT charred layers were more continuous and compact than those of P(BA-VAc)/APP.     

BiOCl/蒙脱土复合光催化剂的制备及其光催化活性

为优化BiOCl光催化剂的结构,改善其对有机污染物的吸附性能,进而提高光催化反应活性,采用超声辅助化学沉淀法制备了BiOCl/蒙脱土(MMT)复合光催化剂,并考察了MMT质量分数(w(MMT))对复合光催化剂结构及光催化反应活性的影响。 X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)、傅里叶红外光谱(FTIR)和紫外-可见漫反射光谱(DRS)等的表征结果表明,所得催化剂呈微球状结构,禁带宽度为3.24 eV。 随着w(MMT)的增加,催化剂的微球状结构逐渐被破坏,但带隙能未发生明显变化。 以8-羟基喹啉为目标物考察了复合催化剂的吸附及光催化反应活性。 结果表明,随着w(MMT)增加,催化剂对8-羟基喹啉的吸附和光催化氧化活性逐渐增加,这可归因于与MMT的复合增大了比表面积并降低了光生载流子复合效率。 当w(MMT)为15%时,催化剂的吸附及光催化性能达到最佳,光照50 min后,8-羟基喹啉的降解率达到85.6%,矿化率达到51.0%。 光生空穴和超氧自由基负离子为主要的氧化活性物种。 复合催化剂还可高效降解邻苯二酚和对氨基苯甲酸。 同时,复合光催化剂表现出较强的化学稳定性,表明其具有较强的实际应用价值,可用于处理含有机酚类污染物的工业废水。     

Modified montmorillonite combined with intumescent flame retardants on the flame retardancy and thermal stability properties of unsaturated polyester resins

Modified montmorillonite‐containing phytic acid (PA‐MMT) has been prepared by acid treatment and then introduced into unsaturated polyester resin (UPR) with an intumescent flame retardant (IFRs). The flame retardancy and thermal degradation of UPR/IFRs/PA‐MMT were evaluated by a limiting oxygen index (LOI) test, a vertical burning test (UL‐94), a thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and a cone calorimeter test (CCT). Besides, the mechanical properties were studied by a universal testing machine. The LOI value of UPR/IFRs/PA‐MMT composites was increased to 29.2%. The CCT results indicated that the incorporation of PA‐MMT and IFRs significantly improved the combustion behavior of UPR. The results of the mechanical properties indicated that 1.5 wt% loading of PA‐MMT in UPR/IFRs showed the highest improvement in flexural strength and tensile strength. The flame‐retardant mechanism of PA‐MMT/IFRs was examined and discussed based on the results of combustion behavior and char analysis.     

Swelling and Drying Mechanisms of Freeze-Thawed Polyvinyl Alcohol/Egg White/Montmorillonite Bionanocomposite Hydrogels

Abstract

Polyvinyl alcohol and egg white bionanocomposite hydrogels loaded with montmorillonite clay were fabricated by a freezing-thawing technique. The bionanocomposite hydrogels showed an exfoliated morphology and they had a more interconnected and dense network as compared with the clay-free sample. The montmorillonite layers acted as multifunctional crosslinkers and the bionanocomposite hydrogels had nanoscale, slit-shaped pores. The swelling ratios of the bionanocomposite hydrogels were increased either by decreasing the content of incorporated montmorillonite or by increasing the pH of the swelling medium. It was found that the bionanocomposite hydrogels having a higher content of montmorillonite exhibited a slightly slower drying process with a longer drying duration. Using the Ritger-Peppas model, it was shown that the swelling and drying mechanisms for all bionanocomposite hydrogels were non-Fickian diffusion. According to the Peppas-Sahlin model, it was found that the absorption of the swelling agent molecules during the swelling process and also the removal of water molecules during the drying process in the early stages of the processes occurred mostly due to their diffusion. At higher swelling or drying times, the contribution of the relaxation (for swelling) and shrinkage (for drying) of the polyvinyl alcohol polymeric chains and egg white protein chains was increased.     

Electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness and microwave absorption properties of thermoplastic polyurethane/montmorillonite‐polypyrrole nanocomposites

In this work, thermoplastic polyurethane‐filled montmorillonite‐polypyrrole (TPU/Mt‐PPy) was prepared through melt mixing process for using in electromagnetic shielding applications. The effect of conducting filler content and type, sample thickness, and X‐band frequency range on the electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (EMI SE) and EMI attenuation mechanism was investigated. A comparative study of electrical and microwave absorption properties of TPU/Mt‐PPy nanocomposites and TPU/PPy blends was also reported. The total EMI SE average and electrical conductivity of all Mt‐PPy.Cl or Mt‐PPy.DBSA nanocomposites are higher than those found for TPU/PPy.Cl and TPU/PPy.DBSA blends. This behavior was attributed to the higher aspect ratio and better dispersion of the nanostructured Mt‐PPy when compared with neat PPy. Moreover, the presence of Mt‐PPy into TPU matrix increases absorption loss (SE_A) mechanism, contributing to increase EMI SE. The total EMI SE values of nanocomposites containing 30 wt% of Mt‐PPy.DBSA with 2 and 5 mm thickness were approximately 16.6 and approximately 36.5 dB, respectively, corresponding to the total EMI of 98% (75% by absorption) and 99.9% (88% by absorption). These results highlight that the nanocomposites studied are promising materials for electromagnetic shielding applications.     

Effect of surfactant agent upon the structure of montmorillonite

The modification of sodium montmorillonite (MMT) through the incorporation of amphiphilic octadecylammonium cations in various concentrations (10–200% CEC) into the clay’s interlayer spaces has been studied. High resolution thermogravimetric analysis shows that the thermal decomposition of modified montmorillonite occurs in three steps. The first step of mass loss is related to dehydration of adsorbed water and water hydrating metal cations such as Na⁺. The second step of mass loss is attributed to the decomposition of surfactant. The third step is due to the loss of OH units during the dehydroxylation of the montmorillonite. The conformation of the surfactant cations in the confined space of the silicate galleries is investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis. These analyses are very important for any attempt to incorporate the organomodified MMT particles into different media for various applications such as polymer nanocomposite preparation.