Composites of polycaprolactone (PCL) with mesoporous silica MCM-41 and N-[3- (trimethoxysilyl)propyl]-ethylenediamine (EPTES)-functionalized MCM-41 (EPTES/MCM-41) were prepared by in situ polymerization. The t...Composites of polycaprolactone (PCL) with mesoporous silica MCM-41 and N-[3- (trimethoxysilyl)propyl]-ethylenediamine (EPTES)-functionalized MCM-41 (EPTES/MCM-41) were prepared by in situ polymerization. The thermal properties of the composites were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis. There was an increase in the thermal decomposition temperature of PCL by more than 55 ℃, when the EPTES/MCM-41 loading was higher than 2 wt%. Tensile test results indicated that adding MCM-41 increased the brittleness of the PCL matrix, while adding 8 wt% of EPTES/MCM-41 increased the Young's modulus by 26%. Incorporating MCM-41 increased the crystallinity of the resulting PCL composite, compared with that of PCL. Incorporating up to 5 wt% EPTES/MCM-41 slightly reduced the crystallinity of PCL. The different effects of MCM-41 and EPTES/MCM-41 on the composite reflected the degree of interaction and dispersion of the silica filler in the polymer matrix, as evidenced by results from transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy.展开更多
文摘Composites of polycaprolactone (PCL) with mesoporous silica MCM-41 and N-[3- (trimethoxysilyl)propyl]-ethylenediamine (EPTES)-functionalized MCM-41 (EPTES/MCM-41) were prepared by in situ polymerization. The thermal properties of the composites were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis. There was an increase in the thermal decomposition temperature of PCL by more than 55 ℃, when the EPTES/MCM-41 loading was higher than 2 wt%. Tensile test results indicated that adding MCM-41 increased the brittleness of the PCL matrix, while adding 8 wt% of EPTES/MCM-41 increased the Young's modulus by 26%. Incorporating MCM-41 increased the crystallinity of the resulting PCL composite, compared with that of PCL. Incorporating up to 5 wt% EPTES/MCM-41 slightly reduced the crystallinity of PCL. The different effects of MCM-41 and EPTES/MCM-41 on the composite reflected the degree of interaction and dispersion of the silica filler in the polymer matrix, as evidenced by results from transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy.