Preparation of UHMWPE/MMT nanocomposites via high energy milling

The ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) has a molecular mass of the order of a millions of grams per mole. So, UHMWPE presents prominent properties, for instance, abrasion and impact resistance. However, due to its very high viscosity in the melt state, the preparation of composites by conventional extrusion and injection molding is not possible. Therefore, in this work we studied the possibility of incorporating montmorillonite (MMT) into the matrix of the UHMWPE in the solid state, via high energy milling. The formulations were prepared in Attritor mill by milling UHMWPE reactor powder and MMT. The samples were characterized by apparent density, XRD, AFM and SEM. Results show that this route of processing was effective to incorporate MMT into the matrix of UHMWPE.