A biomimetic approach to enhancing interfacial interactions: polydopamine-coated clay as reinforcement for epoxy resin.

Liping Yang, Si Lei Phua, Jun Kai Herman Teo, Cher Ling Toh, Soo Khim Lau, Jan Ma, Xuehong Lu

School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798, Republic of Singapore.

ACS applied materials & interfaces 2011 Aug

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A facile biomimetic method was developed to enhance the interfacial interaction in polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites. By mimicking mussel adhesive proteins, a monolayer of polydopamine was constructed on clay surface by a controllable coating method. The modified clay (D-clay) was incorporated into an epoxy resin, it is found that the strong interfacial interactions brought by the polydopamine benefits not only the dispersion of the D-clay in the epoxy but also the effective interfacial stress transfer, leading to greatly improved thermomechanical properties at very low inorganic loadings. Rheological and infrared spectroscopic studies show that the interfacial interactions between the D-clay and epoxy are dominated by the hydrogen bonds between the catechol-enriched polydopamine and the epoxy.

Citation

Liping Yang, Si Lei Phua, Jun Kai Herman Teo, Cher Ling Toh, Soo Khim Lau, Jan Ma, Xuehong Lu. A biomimetic approach to enhancing interfacial interactions: polydopamine-coated clay as reinforcement for epoxy resin. ACS applied materials & interfaces. 2011 Aug;3(8):3026-32