Preparation and characterization of polymer/layered silicate pharmaceutical nanobiomaterials using high clay load exfoliation processes

The purpose of this study was to prepare and characterize lamellar silicate nanocomposites using exfoliation processes, high clay load and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), ethylcellulose (EC) and polyquaternium-H (PQH). The clays (sodium montmorillonite, Viscogel S4™, S7™ and B8™) were pre-treated with ultrasonic energy in order to increase clay exfoliation yields. Polymeric nanocomposites were characterized by XRPD, DSC, TGA, DLS and NMR. The results revealed a new exfoliation method and new intercalated nanocomposites. High clay load was used to obtain the nanocomposites, which enables its application at an industrial scale. These nanocomposites could be broadly applied across the pharmaceutical, medical and food industries.