Clay intercalates with organic mono- and bi-layers in isoprene rubber

Objective of the present work was to identify the nanostructure of composites prepared by compounding isoprene rubber, either synthetic (IR) or natural (NR), with pristine (MMT) and organo-modified (O-MMT) montmorillonite, and also by mixing rubber, clay and organic modifier (OM), an ammonium salt bearing organic radicals. The effect of the time on the morphology was thoroughly investigated by X-ray diffraction measurements and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM).