Synthesis and characterization of clay polymer composites of acrylamide and starch obtained by frontal polymerization

In this study, the synthesis of a clay-polymer composite was carried out by the frontal polymerization technique (FP) of one biopolymer, starch (Alm), with the acrylamide (AAm) monomer; also, the intercalation of an organo-modified clay was performed, and their properties were studied. To achieve this, a natural Mexican bentonite was modified with a cationic surfactant, hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HDTMA-Br), to change its nature from hydrophilic to hydrophobic. In the case of both natural and modified clay, a laminar structure was observed and confirmed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Finally, the synthesis of the copolymers and their respective composites, where the organo-modified clay was dispersed within their structure, was carried out using different ratios between Alm and AAm. The obtained materials were also characterized by means of their physicochemical properties, such as the swelling behavior, as well as FTIR and SEM techniques. Graphical abstract In this study, the synthesis of a clay-polymer composite was carried out by the frontal polymerization technique (FP) of one biopolymer, starch (Alm), with the acrylamide (AAm) monomer; also, the intercalation of an organo-modified clay was performed, and their properties were studied. Additionally, the synthesis of the copolymers, and their respective composites, was carried out using different ratios between Alm and AAm. Finally, the obtained materials were characterized by means of their physicochemical properties, such as the swelling behavior, as well as FTIR and SEM techniques.