Organoclay Filled Natural Rubber Nanocomposites: The Effects of Filler Loading

Abstract

Organoclay filled natural rubber (NR) nanocomposites were prepared using a laboratory two-roll mill. The effect of organoclay loading up to 10 phr was studied. The vulcanized nanocomposites were subjected to mechanical, thermal, and swelling tests. The results indicated that the tensile strength and elongation at break reached optimum at 4 phr of organoclay loading, and the incorporation of organoclay increased the tensile modulus and hardness of NR nanocomposites. The thermal degradation was shifted to a higher temperature and the weight loss decreased with incorporation of organoclay. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to characterize the microstructure of NR nanocomposites. Results from TEM and XRD show the formation of intercalated and exfoliated individual silicate layers of organoclay filled NR nanocomposites particularly at low filler loading (< 4 phr).