Microstructure and on-line shear viscosity of PP/nano-CaCO₃ composites prepared by twin-screw extruder

Excerpt

Polymer-based nanocomposites have been extensively studied in research and application because the addition of the nanoparticles provides an increased stiffness, toughness, and dimensional stability. The aggregation of the nanoparticles, however, owing to their high surface energy, strongly decreases the properties of the nanocomposites, which enormously limits their engineering applications. Nano-calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) is one of the most commonly used nanoparticles for thermoplastics, such as polypropylene (PP) and poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC). Many efforts have been devoted to decrease the aggregation of the nano-CaCO₃ particles. The surface modification of the nano-CaCO₃ is believed to be one of the effective ways, which can increase the polymer–nanoparticle interactions [1‐4]. …