Study of utilizing thin polymer surface coating on the nanoparticles for melt compounding of polycarbonate/alumina nanocomposites and their optical properties

This paper presents a thin polymer surface coating approach to facilitate dispersion of poly(styrene-maleic anhydride) (SMA) copolymer-coated alumina (Al2O3) nanoparticles in polycarbonate (PC) using a high intensity thermokinetic mixer (K-mixer) and the optical properties of the resultant nanocomposites. Electron spectroscopy for chemical analyses (ESCA), energy filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) were used to investigate the covalent bonding of polymer coating on the nanoparticles and the nanoparticle dispersion. The light transmittance of the PC/alumina nanocomposites was measured and compared with that of the transparent neat resin.