Nanocomposites based on Gelatin

J.F.MARTUCCI, A. VAZQUEZ, R.A. RUSECKAITE

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Conferencia; III International Conference on Science and Technology of Composite Materials; 2005

Stabilized Ge/MMt composites were successfully obtained for a variety of unmodified clay concentrations and in the absence of plasticizers and cross linking agents. Exfoliated and exfoliated/intercalated morphologies providing sufficient interactions between gelatin and clay particles. Final composite properties resulted to be intimately related with the clay content and the extension of exfoliated, exfoliated/intercalated and agglomerated structures. Tensile properties of the nanocomposites, particularly stiffness, increased continuously with the filler content, until a content of 10 wt.%, beyond which the mechanical properties leveled off and/or decreased. A significant improvement in thermal stability and water uptake was observed for clay contents in the range of 3-10 wt.%. Thus, variation in MMt content can be used to obtain gelatin-based materials with modulated properties.