| Abstract: | Nitrile rubber (NBR)–clay nanocomposites were prepared by co‐coagulating the NBR latex and clay aqueous suspension. Transmission electron microscopy showed that the silicate layers of clay were dispersed in the NBR matrix at the nano level and had a planar orientation. X‐ray diffraction indicated that there were some nonexfoliated silicate layers in the NBR–clay nanocomposites. Stress–strain curves showed that the silicate layers generated evident reinforcement, modulus, and tensile strength of the NBR–clay nanocomposites, which were significantly improved with an increase in the amount of clay, and strain‐at‐break was higher than that of the gum NBR vulcanizate when the amount of clay was more than 5 phr. The NBR–clay nanocomposites exhibited an excellent gas barrier property; the reduction in gas permeability in the NBR–clay nanocomposites can be described by Nielsen's model. Compared with gum NBR vulcanizate, the oxygen index of the NBR–clay nanocomposites increased slightly. The feasibility of controlling rubber flammability via the nanocomposite approach needs to be evaluated further. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 89: 3855–3858, 2003 |
