The distribution of hydrophobized inorganic nanoparticles in thermoresponsive polymer nanocomposite films investigated by Scanning Probe and Electron Microscopy

Nanoparticle Distribution in Three‐Layer Polymer–Nanoparticle Composite Films: Comparison of Experiment and Theory

“…Layer Preparation : A stable hydrophilic polymer substrate was prepared by attaching first an anchor layer of poly(glycidyl methacrylate) ( = 17 500 g mol −1 , PDI = 1.70, Polymer Source, Inc.) followed by covalently grafting end‐functionalized PNIPAAm molecules on the silicon wafer as described earlier . On top of the brush‐like PNIPAAm film, a nanoparticle layer was created by spin‐coating a dispersion of the nanoparticles in THF (3000 rpm, 25 s).…”

“…Phase separation of polymer blends or diblock copolymers with incorporated nanoparticles leads to ordered structures with nanoparticles either dispersed in one phase or enriched at the phase boundaries. Thin polymeric layers with self‐assembled nanoparticle structures have been created by spin‐coating nanoparticle–polymer– solvent dispersions on a flat substrate . Stable multilayer composites with individual film thicknesses have been prepared by several spin‐coating steps followed by thermal treatment and cross‐linking of the polymer …”

“…Distribution and self‐assembly of the particles are determined by interactions between the polymer molecules, between the particles and between particles and polymer, that is, by the miscibility of polymer and nanoparticles . Since inorganic particles and polymers are often immiscible, their compatibility can be improved by surface modification of the particles with surfactants, organic substances, or grafted polymers …”

“…If the nanocomposites are prepared by spin‐coating, the interaction of polymer and particles with the solvent plays an additional role; ordered structures can be created by adjusting the solvent properties . During spin‐coating, the particles often migrate to the interface between polymer and substrate or to the polymer surface . This is driven by a gain of entropy: the enrichment of particles at the interface releases the polymer chains from the constraints imposed by the substrate .…”

Preparation and Performance ofcis-Polybutadiene Rubber Composite Materials Reinforced by Organic Modified Palygorskite Nanomaterials

“…The second method is carried out through predispersing clay compatible with cispolybutadiene rubber. The main purpose of the above two methods is to improve interfacial interaction, and thus the properties of nanocomposites are strongly influenced by the nature of filler-matrix interface [18][19][20][21]. However, there is only a few reports about cis-polybutadiene rubber nanocomposites containing modified palygorskite nanomaterials.…”