M. Tech. Polymer Technology / Reduced carbon dioxide emissions, improved fuel economy and better performance are just but a few pressures that have continued to define the automotive industry, globally. Low-cost and light weight materials have continually been used to replace metals as conventional raw materials in the manufacturing of automotives. Polymers have been a material of choice for meeting these demands; mainly due to their versatility, ease of processing and giving the manufacturers an option of parts integration. The industry has experienced remarkable product improvement from metal-to-plastic conversion and hence, further the plastic-to-plastic refinement of vehicle parts, from the interior, to body panels and to engine parts. Glass-filled polyamide 66 (PA66) composites have been extensively used in the production of engine components since post World War II era, which has paved the way for glass-filled polyamide 6 (PA6) composites, which has a lower melting point than PA66, to be used in technical applications for vehicle engine parts. This work attempts to investigate the use of layered double hydroxide (LDH) clay, the so called "anionic" clays for the preparation of PA6/LDH composites. In this study, PA6/LDH composites were prepared and the effect of organic modification of magnesium (Mg)-aluminium (Al) LDH clay was investigated. The aim of this research was to investigate the effect of organically modified and "unmodified" commercial Mg-Al LDH on the thermal, mechanical and physical properties of PA6 composites.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:tut/oai:encore.tut.ac.za:d1001514 |
| Date | January 2014 |
| Creators | Zwane, Recardo Derely Sibusiso. |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format |
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