Study of the layered silicate/asphalt nanocomposites

Layered silicates/asphalt nanocomposites containing unmodified layered silicate montmorillonite (MMT) or organic modified montmorillonite (OMMT) and ordinary petroleum asphalt were prepared in this research. MMT/asphalt nanocomposite was prepared by melt blending. As for the OMMT/asphalt nanocomposite, MMT was first treated appropriately with Dodecyl Dimethyl Benzyl Ammonium Chloride (DDBAC) to obtain the organic modified montmorillonite (OMMT). Afterwards OMMT was blended with asphalt to form nanocomposite. FT-IR and XRD were used to characterize the chemical structures of MMT and OMMT. And the effect of MMT and OMMT on the viscosity of asphalt was investigated in detail.