The Toughening Effect and Mechanism of Styrene-Butadiene Rubber Nanoparticles for Novolac Resin

摘要

In this article, phenolic nanocomposites were prepared using styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) nanoparticles with an average particle size of about 60 nm as the toughening agent. The mechanical and thermal properties of phenolic nanocomposites and the toughening mechanism were studied thoroughly. The results showed that when adding 2.5 wt % SBR nanoparticles, the notched impact strength of phenolic nanocomposites reached the maximum value and was increased by 52%, without sacrificing the flexural performance. Meanwhile, SBR nanoparticles had no significant effect on the thermal decomposition temperature of phenolic nanocomposites. The glass-transition temperature (T-g) of phenolic nanocomposites shifted to a lower temperature accompanying with the increasing T-g of loaded SBR, which showed there was a certain compatibility between SBR nanoparticles and phenol-formaldehyde resin (PF). Furthermore, the analysis of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicated that there existed a weak chemical interaction between SBR nanoparticles and the PF matrix. The certain compatibility and weak chemical interaction promoted the formation of a transition layer and improved the interfacial bonding, which might be important reasons for the great enhancement of the toughness for phenolic nanocomposites. (c) 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 41533.