A way to generate polyamide nanocomposite with fine silica structures

What is it about?

Nanocomposites have been a major area of interest for years due to improvements obtained in the mechanical, thermal, barrier properties, etc. of the base polymers via inclusion of small size fillers (at least one dimension in nanometer). Greater enhancement of the base polymer were obtained especially with fillers of large aspect ratio (length /thickness) and large interfacial contact. We developed a synthesis method for generating these small features in the polyamide, a type of engineering polymer typically chosen for high heat applications, utilizing low temperature synthesis routes for synthesizing the polymer and the filler at the same time.

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Why is it important?

Our study differentiates from earlier work with the application of lower temperature synthesis routes. Our findings show the successful generation of fillers within the base polymer, demonstrates the important variables to consider and the output regarding thermo-mechanical properties.