Unusual Rheological Behavior of Liquid Polybutadiene Rubber/Clay Nanocomposite Gels: The Role of Polymer−Clay Interaction, Clay Exfoliation, and Clay Orientation and Disorientation

The rheological properties of liquid polybutadiene rubber/organo-clay nanocomposite gels were investigated by rheological experiments, focusing on the effects of clay exfoliation and orientation−disorientation as well as polymer−clay interaction and temperature. Both irreversible and reversible viscosity transitions were observed in the temperature range from 26 to 136 °C in steady shear experiments on as-prepared and exfoliated samples. These …