Cellulose nanocrystals-organic montmorillonite nanohybrid material by electrostatic self-assembly

The hybridization based on various nanoparticles is an emerging technological field, involving the synergistic hybrid assembly of nanoparticles. In order to broaden the application of existing nanomaterials such as cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) and montmorillonite (MMT), a novel CNC–organic MMT (OMMT) nanohybrid material was constructed by electrostatic self-assembly. Morphology observations showed that one-dimensional needle-like CNC were adsorbed on the surface of two-dimensional flake-like OMMT, thereby forming a three-dimensional nanohybrid. In the nanohybrid, CNC and OMMT still maintained their original chemical structures. Zeta potential results indicated that there was a strong electrostatic adsorption between CNC and OMMT. Based on this, the lamellar structure of OMMT can hide sulfate groups on the CNC surface and had a shielding effect on heat transfer, thereby evidently improving the thermal stability of the nanohybrid. The nanohybrid with unique nanostructure is expected to achieve synergistic effects in polymer nanocomposites, which may provide a promising strategy for the fabrication of high-performance polymer nanocomposites.