LDPEHDPEClay Nanocomposites : Effects of Compatibilizer on the Structure and Dielectric Response

Abstract EN

PE/clay nanocomposites were prepared by mixing a commercially available premixed polyethylene/O-MMT masterbatch into a polyethylene blend matrix containing 80 wt% low-density polyethylene and 20 wt% high-density polyethylene with and without anhydride modified polyethylene (PE-MA) as the compatibilizer using a corotating twin-screw extruder.

In this study, the effect of nanoclay and compatibilizer on the structure and dielectric response of PE/clay nanocomposites has been investigated.

The microstructure of PE/clay nanocomposites was characterized using wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and a scanning electron microscope (SEM).

Thermal properties were examined using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC).

The dielectric response of neat PE was compared with that of PE/clay nanocomposite with and without the compatibilizer.

The XRD and SEM results showed that the PE/O-MMT nanocomposite with the PE-MA compatibilizer was better dispersed.

In the nanocomposite materials, two relaxation modes are detected in the dielectric losses.

The first relaxation is due to a Maxwell-Wagner-Sillars interfacial polarization, and the second relaxation can be related to dipolar polarization.

A relationship between the degree of dispersion and the relaxation rate fmax of Maxwell-Wagner-Sillars was found and discussed.