Abstract

Bio-polyamide nanocomposites were prepared using the two most viable techniques from the industrial point of view: the melt intercalation process and in situ polymerization. The effect of the synthesis approach and the amount of nanofibre were evaluated in order to check their influence on morphological, thermal and mechanical properties. Regardless of the preparation method, all nanocomposites showed good despersion of nanoclay in polyamide matrix and significant improvements in Young modulus, tensile strenght and heat-distortion temperature were achieved. However, the nanocomposites obtained by in situ polymerization presented higher values since the dispersion of the nanoclay occurs during polymerization, when polymer chains are growing and the viscosity of the matrix is still low.