Polyurethane Grafted Attapulgite as Novel Fillers for Nylon 6 Nanocomposites

Attapulgite fibers were modified by polyurethane, forming polyurethane grafted attapulgite （AT-PU）, which was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy （FTIR）, X-ray diffraction （XRD） and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）. Nylon 6/AT-PU nanocomposites of different modified attapulgite loadings were prepared by melt blending in a twin screw extruder. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） observation on the fracture surfaces of the nanocomposites showed not only a uniform dispersion of AT-PU but also a strong interfacial adhesion with the matrix. Differential scanning calorimeter （DSC） and Thermogravimetric analyzer （TGA） were used to illustrate the infiuence of AT-PU particles on the thermal properties of the nylon 6/AT-PU nanocomposites. The results indicated that the addition of attapulgite probably induced the heterogeneous nucleation and was favorable for the formation of γ -crystalline form, and that the higher thermal stability was obtained for the composites.