Synthesis and characterization of polyurethane/bentonite nanoclay based nanocomposites using toluene diisocyanate

Polyurethanes (PUs) prepolymers blended with bentonite nanoclay and without bentonite nanoclay were prepared by the reaction of toluene-2,4-diisocyanate (TDI) and hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene (HTPB), and the chain was further extended with 1,4-butane diol (1,4-BDO) to get final polyurethane nanocomposites (PUNC). A mixture of polymer and bentonite clay enriched in montmorillonite (MMT) was formed in solution polymerization, in which MMT dispersed depending on interaction of MMT with polymer chains. The molecular structure of the monomers and the prepared PU nanocomposites was confirmed by FTIR. A series of PUNCs were prepared by varying the percent compositions of bentonite nanoclay into the PU matrix. The existence of the clay in to the PU was confirmed by scanning electron microscope (SEM). SEM images verified the good dispersion of the bentonite nanoclay in PU matrix.