Abstract
Due to the natural properties of low cost, environmentally friendly clay minerals as nano-materials with a high aspect ratio and large surface area, clay platelets are very convenient filler and reinforcing materials in matrix materials such as polymers to produce advanced nano-composites with unique properties. Clay-based polymer nano-composites can have new and different properties that make them suitable for many different industrial and commercial applications, such as in automotive, medicine, electronics, sensors, construction, packaging, coatings, drugs, biomedical engineering, and others. Production of these nano-composite materials involves several steps of material preparation, mixing, and processing. Basically, the design of these nano-composites depends on a simple concept and the mechanism of strengthening a material with weak properties by adding a small amount of another material with strong properties. Reinforcing the main material (polymer) with a certain ratio (5%- 15%) of filler (nano-clay), will transform the polymer into an advanced functional material. The morphology, characterization, and analysis of these materials are based on that concept. There have been problems and difficulties in manufacturing these nano-composites. In the current study, a new point of view is taken involving a new concept, a new mechanism, new techniques for mixing and processing, and new methods of analysis and characterization. This study utilizes a new approach to understand and control the interfacial bond strength between the clay nano-fibers and the polymer, voids and inclusions, the de-bonding process between the fibers and the polymer, fiber orientation, fiber distribution and intensity, fracture, and cracks. This study uses natural Saudi nano-clay and polymers to solve the problems and difficulties with clay/polymer nano-composites that previous studies encountered.