Modification of montmorillonite by quaternary polyesters

In this paper, we report on the preparation of organically modified montmorillonite (OMM) and its properties, using quaternary polyesters. The polyester was synthesized from N-methyldiethanolamine and succinic acid anhydride, converted to the quaternary polyester using benzyl bromide, and characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), size exclusion chromatography (SEC), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Quaternary polyesters with a quaternization degree of 0.25 and 0.5 were used to modify montmorillonite (MMT). The intercalation was determined by X-ray diffraction. Interlayer spacing increased with decreased MMT/polyester ratio and with increased degree of quaternization. The thermal stability of polyester bound to MMT greatly increased.