Enhanced Exfoliation of Organoclay in Partially End‐Functionalized Non‐Polar Polymer

Abstract We found that enhanced exfoliation of clay up to 20 wt.‐% in non‐polar polybutadiene (PB) if the PB was blended with a relatively small fraction of hydroxyl‐terminated PB (HTPB). The choice of an intermediate polymer composition to enhance exfoliation was motivated by theoretical predictions of end‐functionalizing effects of Balazs, Farmer, and coworkers. A combination of X‐ray diffraction and rheological measurements were used to optimize HTPB content for enhanced exfoliation. We also observed the competition of the kinetic and thermodynamic processes during the ripening of the exfoliated clay structure. magnified image