Preparation and properties of ABS-silica nanocomposites through sol-gel process under the catalyzation of different catalysts

Nanocomposites of acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS) and silica were prepared by the sol-gel process using tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) in the presence of ABS under the catalyzation of HCl and NH4F, respectively. The gelation of the ABS/TEOS sol-gel solution using NH4F as the catalyst was faster than that of the system using HCl as the catalyst. The microstructure and dynamic mechanical properties of the nanocomposites derived from the different catalysts were investigated in detail by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FTIR, solid-state NMR, and dynamic mechanical analyzer (DMA). The ABS/SiO2-NH4F had higher interfacial force, smoother and denser morphology, and better physical performance than the ABS/SiO2-HCl did.