Study on the Rheological, Crystallization, and Mechanical Properties of HDPE Functionalized by Nano-SiO2

Abstract

The authors investigated the rheological, mechanical, and crystallization properties of nanocomposites consisting of SiO2 modified by aluminate coupling agent and high-density polyethylene (HDPE). The scanning electron microscope photographs showed that the SiO2 nanoparticles modified by aluminate coupling agent were evenly dispersed in the HDPE matrix without any aggregation. All the results indicate that the SiO2 nanoparticles as a nucleation agent induced the formation of the smaller crystal sizes and higher crystallinity of polyethylene in HDPE/modified SiO2 nanocomposites. The nanocomposites revealed excellent shear thinning behavior at high frequency and the mechanical properties could enhance at the same time.