Relaxation Processes And Glass Transition In Polymer Filled With Nanoparticles

We report the results of the investigations of the influence of filling of polymer with Aerosil nanosize particles on the glass transition and dynamics of the alpha-and the beta-relaxation processes in poly(n-octyl methacrylate) by dielectric spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The polymer was filled with hydrophilic and hydrophobic Aerosil particles of 12 nm diameter. in filled polymers the characteristic frequency of the alpha-process was shifted to higher frequencies in comparison with pure bulk polymer at the same temperature. This suggests that the filling of the polymer with nanoparticles has resulted in the shift of its glass transition temperature T-g. This change in T-g was mainly due to the existence of a developed solid particle-polymer interface and the difference in the dynamic behavior of the polymer in the surface layers at this interface compared to the bulk behavior. This result was in agreement with DSC experiments.