On-line rheometry: a tool to monitor polymer nanocomposites production

Abstract

The high potential of polymer nanocomposites has attracted the interest of both industrial and scientific communities. The final properties of these materials depend not only on the characteristics of the matrix and nanofillers, but also on the degree of dispersion of the nanofiller in the polymeric matrix. There are different methods to promote the dispersion of nanofillers in polymeric matrices, but the most promising is based on melt mixing, where the dispersion is achieved through the application shear and elongational stresses on a mixture of the polymer melt and nanofiller, usually performed on complex mixing devices. In order to improve the knowledge of the phenomena involved in the melt mixing process, several research groups are developing on/in-line adequate monitoring techniques, among these the online rheometry has shown to be a suitable choice. This work presents a new accessory conceived for a previously developed automated on-line rheometry system, which allows to couple easily the rheometer to any extruder. The developed system was subsequently used to study the effect of some process parameters related to the melt mixing process, which evidences the adequacy of these tools for monitoring purposes.