Production of sebs/halloysite nanocomposites and effect of using SEBS-g-MA compatibilizer

Poly (Styrene-b- (ethylene-co-butylene) -b-styrene) (SEBS) thermoplastic elastomer is used to increase the toughness and impact strength of blends and composites prepared with engineering plastics. Although it does not have as good chemical resistance as the thermoset elastomers, it has an alternative to thermoset elastomers in the automotive and white goods industry due to its similar mechanical properties. In the literature, there are studies related to nanocomposites containing SEBS matrix and organophilic layered silicate based nanoclay and carbon nanotube (CNT) in order to improve the thermal and mechanical properties of SEBS. In this study, halloysite nanotube (HNT) was used to improve the weak mechanical strength of SEBS thermoplastic elastomer. The HNT filler was modified with cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) by using the cryoscopic expansion / modification method and transformed into organophilic HNT (Org-HNT). Characterization of Org-HNT was carried out by XRD, SEM and TG analysis methods. In the production of SEBS / SEBS-g-MA / Org-HNT nanocomposites, the solution mixing method was preferred. Hot press/compression molding were used to produce test samples. By using SEBS-g-MA compatibilizer, it was thought that intertubular interactions of the nanotubes decrease and this help to disperse the nanotubes better in the matrix. The morphology of the prepared nanocomposites was analyzed by SEM imaging technique. In order to determine the effect of polymer matrix-nanotube interaction on thermal and mechanical properties, static mechanical and dynamic mechanical analyzes and thermal gravimetric analyzes were performed. When only 3 phr Org-HNT was used in production of SEBS nanocomposite, it was found that the tensile strength increased by 380% and 30% by toughness as compared to neat SEBS matrix. When 3 phr Org-HNT together with 15 phr SEBS-g-MA was used, the tensile strength and the toughness of the produced nanocomposite increased about 370 % and 115%, respectively. According to results of thermogravimetric analyses, the thermal stabilities of the composites were found to be higher than neat SEBS when Org-HNT filler and SEBS-g-MA compatibilizeer were used together in the production of SEBS nanocomposites. Among the ternary nanocomposites, the nanocomposite containing 3 phr Org-HNT and 10 phr SEBS-g-MA compatibilizer was found to have the highest damping property between -70 and +120 ° C. At low temperatures, the storage moduli of all the composites containing the compatibilizer was found to be higher than those of SEBS / HNT composite and neat SEBS polymer. While the damping parameters of the nanocomposites at +25 ° C are not much different compared to pure SEBS, the storage moduli were increased by about 100%. According to the results of static and dynamic mechanical analyses, the highest performance in setting the hardness-toughness / damping balance was achieved for the nanocomposite having 3 phr Org-HNT and 10 phr SEBS-g-MA compatibilizer.