Effect of In Situ Surface-Modified Nano-SiO2 on the Thermal and Mechanical Properties and Crystallization Behavior of Nylon 1010

Nylon 1010 composites filled with two types of surface-modified SiO2 nanoparticles (RNS and DNS) were prepared by melt blending. The mechanical properties of the composites were evaluated. The influences of the surface-modified nano-SiO2 on the thermal stability, crystallization behavior, and microstructure of nylon 1010 were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. And the interfacial interactions between the fillers and polymer matrix were examined using a Fourier transformation infrared spectrometer. It was found that the addition of the surface-modified nano-SiO2 had distinct influences on the thermal stability, mechanical properties, and crystallization behavior of nylon 1010. RNS and DNS as the fillers had different effects on the mechanical properties of nylon 1010. The composites filled with RNS at a mass fraction of 1-5% showed increased break elongation, Young's modulus, and impact strength but almost unchanged or even slightly lowered tensile strength than the unfilled matrix. The DNS-filled nylon 1010 composites had obviously decreased tensile strength, whereas the incorporation of DNS also contributed to the increase in the Young's modulus of nylon 1010, but less effective than RNS. Moreover, the nylon 1010 composites had better thermal stability than the neat polymer matrix, and the composites filled with RNS were more thermally stable than those filled with DNS. The difference in the crystallinity of neat nylon 1010 and its composites filled with RNS and DNS was subtle, although the surface-modified nano-SiO2 could induce or/and stabilize the gamma-crystalline formation of nylon 1010. (C) 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 115: 3339-3347, 2010