Effects of montmorillonite, sepiolite, and halloysite clays on the morphology and properties of polycaprolactone bionanocomposites

The article reports some experimental data on the effects of three types of clay: organo-modified montmorillonite (cloisite 30B (C30B)), sepiolite (SP9), and halloysite nanotubes (HNT) on the morphology and physicomechanical properties of polycaprolactone (PCL)/clays bionanocomposites prepared by melt compounding. The clays were incorporated separately into the PCL matrix at a loading rate of 5.00 wt%, which corresponds to 2.91 ± 0.53, 2.42 ± 0.02, and 2.68 ± 0.13 vol% for C30B, SP9, and HNT, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy analysis showed good dispersion of both C30B and SP9 in the polymer matrix, while the presence of a few HNT aggregates was observed on the fracture surface of the PCL bionanocomposite. Furthermore, the HNT aggregates were randomly dispersed. The results indicated an enhancement of the rheological and tensile properties of the PCL bionanocomposite samples filled with C30B and SP9 compared to those containing HNT. Indeed, it was shown an increase in Young’s modulus of PCL from 450 ± 16 MPa to 563 ± 42 MPa, 645 ± 68 MPa, and 502 ± 66 MPa for PCL bionanocomposites loaded with C30B, SP9, and HNT, respectively. On the other hand, the thermal stability of the whole PCL bionanocomposite samples was reduced being, however, more pronounced for those containing HNT. The decomposition temperature recorded at 5.00 wt% loss ( T _5% ) indicated 384.7 ± 0.9 for neat PCL, while the PCL bionanocomposites filled with C30B, SP9, and HNT exhibited the values of 357.3 ± 0.5, 353.2 ± 0.9, and 368.4 ± 0.4, respectively.