Montmorillonite/poly(urethane-siloxane) nanocomposites: Morphological, thermal, mechanical and surface properties

The aim of this work was to prepare and characterize the series of segmented polyurethane nanocomposites (PUNC) modified with poly(dimethylsiloxane) and based on montmorillonite (Mt) as a nano-filler. alpha,omega-Dihydroxy-poly(propylene oxide)-b-poly(dimethylsiloxane)-b-poly(propylene oxide) macrodiol was used as the soft segment component, while 4,4'-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) and 1,4-butanediol (BD) were selected as the hard segment components. PUNC were synthesized with different ratio of hard/soft segments. PUNC were morphologically, structurally, thermally, mechanically and surface characterized by XRD, TEM, FTIR, AFM, TGA, DMTA, tensile test, XPS, contact angle, surface free energy (SFE) and water absorption measurements. Added Mt (1 wt%) was completely delaminated and well dispersed in the form of mixed exfoliated/intercalated layers in the polymer matrix, and that PUNC have more pronounced microphase separated morphology, higher thermal stability, superior mechanical features, enhanced surface properties, as well as outstanding hydrophobicity. Due to the improved features, developed polymers can be considered as candidates for materials with specific biomedical applications or as waterproof coatings