Influence of organophilic clay and preparation methods on EVA/montmorillonite nanocomposites

Ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA)/montmorillonite MMT nanocomposites have been prepared by using different methods: one is from the organophilic montmorillonite (OMT) and the other is from the pristine MMT and reactive compatibilizer hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (C16). In this study, different kneaders were used (twin-screw extruder and twin-roll mill) to prepare nanocomposites. The nanocomposite structures are evidenced by the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution electronic microscope (HREM). The thermal properties of the nanocomposites were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Moreover, the tensile tests were carried out with a Universal testing machine DCS-5000. It is shown that different methods and organophilic montmorillonite have influence on EVA/MMT nanocomposites.© 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 2416–2421, 2004