Poly(styrene-block-isoprene) nanocomposites: Kinetics of intercalation and effects of copolymer on intercalation behaviors

In addition to phase morphology, diffusion, and dynamics in the bulk, the behavior of block copolymers in the confined state has been of great interest. Although random and graft copolymers have been used in polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites, well-defined block copolymers have received relatively little attention. In this study, the kinetics of intercalation of a series of poly(styrene-b-isoprene) block copolymers into a layered silicate were examined via X-ray diffraction. Intercalation was observed even when the copolymer was in the ordered state, with no discontinuity around the order-disorder transition of the copolymer. As the size of the polystyrene block was increased, slower intercalation kinetics were observed, possibly because of the increased glass-transition temperature of the polystyrene segment. Finally, the clearing temperature of the copolymer in the nanocomposites as measured by small-angle X-ray scattering showed a large heating-rate dependence suggesting that the nanoparticles act as kinetics barriers to the disordering of the copolymer.