Synthetic resins or natural rubbers -- part of the class 520 ser – Synthetic resins – At least one aryl ring which is part of a fused or bridged...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-19
2001-05-15
Cain, Edward J. (Department: 1714)
Synthetic resins or natural rubbers -- part of the class 520 ser
Synthetic resins
At least one aryl ring which is part of a fused or bridged...
C524S446000, C524S447000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06232388
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to intercalated layered materials and, optionally, exfoliates thereof, prepared by contacting, and thereby intercalating, a layered material, e.g., a phyllosilicate, such as a smectite clay, with an onium ion spacing/coupling agent and co-intercalation of the layered material with a melt of MXD6 nylon (as polymerizable reactants, or as the nylon oligomer or polymer) to form nanocomposite materials with new and unexpected gas (particularly O
2
) barrier properties. The MXD6 nylon can be intercalated in the form of the nylon reactants (meta-xylylene diamine and adipic acid polymerizable monomers) or, can be unexpectedly easily intercalated as the MXD6 nylon oligomer or polymer by direct compounding, e.g., by combining the onium ion-intercalated layered material and the MXD6 nylon in a mixing or extruding device to produce the co-intercalated layered material and the nanocomposite.
The interlaminar spacing of adjacent layers (platelets) of the layered material is expanded at least about 3 Å, preferably at least about 5 Å, to a basal spacing of at least about 10 Å, preferably to at least about 15 Å, and usually to about 18 Å by contacting the layered material with the onium ion spacing/coupling agent for subsequent intercalation with MXD6 nylon. The onium ion may be primary, secondary, tertiary or quaternary and preferably is a long chain (C
6
+) onium ion spacing/coupling agent having at least one binding (ion-exchange) site capable of ion-exchanging or replacing Li
+
, Na
+
, K
+
, Ca
+
, Mg
+2
, or other inorganic cations that occur within the interlayer spaces between adjacent layers or platelets of the layered materials. The association of the layered material inorganic cations with the onium ion spacing/coupling agent via ion-exchange enables the conversion of the hydrophilic interior clay platelet surfaces to hydrophobic platelet surfaces. Therefore, polymerizable MXD6 nylon oligomers, or polymers, or meta-xylylene diamine and adipic acid monomers capable of reacting to form MXD6 nylon, can be easily intercalated between adjacent platelets of the layered material, e.g., smectite clay platelets.
In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the fully polymerized MXD6 nylon polymer having a weight average molecular weight between about 100 and about 5 million, preferably about 1,000 to about 500,000, is intercalated between adjacent platelets of the onium ion-treated layered material, preferably simultaneously with dispersing the intercalate into an MXD6 nylon matrix polymer, i.e., by direct compounding of the onium ion-treated layered material with the MXD6 nylon polymer. The co-intercalation of the onium ions and MXD6 nylon, or its monomeric reactants, or MXD6 nylon polymerizable oligomers, results in a completely homogeneous dispersion of intercalated layered material and/or exfoliated platelets.
Optionally, the nanocomposite material can be sheared to exfoliate up to 100% of the tactoids or platelet clusters into individual platelets, preferably such that more than 80%; or more than 90% by weight of the layered material can be completely exfoliated into single platelet layers. Quick, easy, and completely homogeneous dispersion of the onium ion/MXD6 nylon co-intercalated layered material in the MXD6 nylon matrix polymer is achieved and the resulting nanocomposite has unexpected O
2
-impermeability. For example, a film of the MXD6 nylon polymer with the layered material, particularly a smectite clay, such as sodium bentonite, can be formed by direct compounding to provide a sheet of the MXD6 nylon without any visible intercalate filler that has completely unexpected, extremely low gas permeability.
The intercalates of the present invention can be dispersed uniformly into MXD6 nylon materials to form MXD6 nylon polymer/clay intercalate nanocomposites by direct compounding of the onium ion-intercalated clay with sufficient MXD6 nylon for intercalation of the clay to form an MXD6 nylon intercalated clay, as a concentrate, that can later be mixed with MXD6 nylon and/or other polymeric materials to form a nanocomposite. Alternatively, the onium ion-intercalated clay can be intercalated with monomer reactants that are polymerizable to form MXD6 nylon (meta-xylylene diamine and a dicarboxylic acid, e.g., adipic acid) to form the MXD6 nylon co-intercalate.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the MXD6 nylon intercalates can be dispersed in one or more matrix monomers followed by polymerization of the matrix monomer(s), e.g., meta-xylylene diamine and adipic acid, with in-situ polymerization of the monomer reactants to form the polymer, in situ, between the platelets of the layered material, and to form the matrix polymer, e.g., by adding a curing agent, to form the nanocomposite material. For example, curing agents can be directly incorporated into the monomeric MXD6 nylon reactants that are intercalated between platelets of the onium ion-intercalated clay followed by polymerization of the MXD6 nylon reactant intercalant monomers that have been intercalated into the clay interlayer galleries. In accordance with an important feature of the present invention, if an intercalant MXD6 nylon polymer is intercalated into the onium ion-intercalated clay galleries, the MXD6 nylon intercalate can be directly compounded with the pristine matrix polymer, preferably an MXD6 nylon matrix polymer, to form a nanocomposite easily, while achieving a nanocomposite material with unheard of gas (O
2
) impermeability. If the meta-xylylene and adipic acid polymerizable intercalant monomers, or a polymerizable MXD6 nylon oligomer intercalant is intercalated into the clay galleries, the intercalant(s) can be polymerized together with a desired monomer, oligomer or polymer matrix material, preferably MXD6 nylon, and the combination then can be compounded to form the nanocomposites.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION AND PRIOR ART
It is well known that phyllosilicates, such as smectite clays, e.g., sodium montmorillonite and calcium montmorillonite, can be treated with organic molecules, such as organic ammonium ions, to intercalate the organic molecules between adjacent, planar silicate layers, for bonding the organic molecules with a polymer, for intercalation of the polymer between the layers, thereby substantially increasing the interlayer (interlaminar) spacing between the adjacent silicate layers. The thus-treated, intercalated phyllosilicates, having interlayer spacings increased by at least 3 Å, preferably at least 5 Å, e.g., to an interlayer (interlaminar) spacing of at least about 10-25 Å and up to about 100 Angstroms, then can be exfoliated, e.g., the silicate layers are separated, e.g., mechanically, by high shear mixing. The individual silicate layers, when admixed with a matrix polymer, before, after or during the polymerization of the matrix polymer, e.g., a polyamide—see U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,739,007; 4,810,734; and 5,385,776—have been found to substantially improve one or more properties of the polymer, such as mechanical strength and/or high temperature characteristics.
Exemplary prior art composites, also called “nanocomposites”, are disclosed in published PCT disclosure of Allied Signal, Inc. WO 93/04118 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,385,776, disclosing the admixture of individual platelet particles derived from intercalated layered silicate materials, with a polymer to form a polymer matrix having one or more properties of the matrix polymer improved by the addition of the exfoliated intercalate. As disclosed in WO 93/04118, the intercalate is formed (the interlayer spacing between adjacent silicate platelets is increased) by adsorption of a silane coupling agent or an onium cation, such as a quaternary ammonium compound, having a reactive group which is compatible with the matrix polymer. Such quaternary ammonium cations are well known to convert a highly hydrophilic clay, such as sodium or calcium montmorillonite, into an organophilic clay
Cruz Hannah T.
Lan Tie
Tomlin Anthony S.
Amcol International Corporation
Cain Edward J.
Marshall O'Toole Gerstein Murray & Borun
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