Pyrolysis of the polypropylene/montmorillonite (PP/OMMT) nanocomposites allows for recovery of the filler that can be then re-used to produce PP/pyrolyzed MMT (PMMT) nanostructured composites. In this work, we discuss the thermal properties of PP/PMMT composites investigated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). It has been found that effect of PMMT (5 wt. % and 10 wt. %) on matrix thermal stability occurs at temperatures above 300 °C. Addition of 5 wt. % and 10 wt. % of PMMT into polypropylene system gave good stabilization effect, as confirmed by the overall stabilization effect (OSE) values, which increased by 4% and 7%, respectively, compared to the control sample (PP). Interestingly, the presence of 1 wt. % and 3 wt. % of pyrolyzed clay stabilizes the system better than the same concentrations of organoclay added into polypropylene melt. DSC data revealed that pyrolyzed clay has still the same tendency as organoclay to enhance formation of the α and β crystalline PP phases only. The pyrolyzed MMT causes an improvement of the modulus in the glassy as well as rubbery regions, as confirmed by DMA results.
Keywords: montmorillonite; nanocomposites; polypropylene; pyrolysis; recycling; thermal properties.