A study on the dispersion of I30E nanoclay in epoxy resin and bitumen matrix.

Abstract

Dispersion of nanoclay in Epikote 828 resin is conducted by closed mixing of the liquid composition, mechanical mixing combined with ultrasonic vibration to form masterbatch; meanwhile, nanoclay dispersion in bitumen is processed by melted bitumen mixing. XRD techniques were used to determine the basal d-spacing of nanoclay. The dispersion was performed in Brabender mixer at temperature 40oC, speed 50 rpm, an Epikot/I30E=100/80 masterbatch provided the best dispersion with d001=33.818 Å. After mechanical mixing, an Epikote 828 composition with 4% I30E was sonicated for 5, 10, and 20 minutes. The value d001=41.65 Å achieved after 10 minutes of sonication was deemed optimal. Dispersion of 4% I30E in melted bitumen at 120, 130, 140, 150, and 160oC after 2h reached d001=49.5916 Å for the sample processed at 120oC. At high temperatures, penetration and delamination of bitumen were better than those of Epikote 828 despite the lower molecular weight of Epikote.