Overview

The mechanical properties of triglyceride-based polymers presented in Chapter 4 are slightly below those of the commercial polymers, such as unsaturated polyesters, which greatly restricts the commercialization and applications of these new bio-based materials. Further chemical modification of triglyceride molecules may not be wise due to the difficulty of processing; in addition, cost can be another critical issue. Reinforcement of polymers with a second phase, whether inorganic or organic, to produce a polymer composite is a common practice in industry.

New polymer nanocomposites represent a radical alternative to the conventional polymer composites. The researchers at the Toyota research center in Japan showed that the tensile modulus and strength were doubled for nylonlayered silicate nanocomposites containing as little as 2 vol% clay, and the heat distortion temperature of the nanocomposites increased 87 C, extending the use of this polymer to under-the-hood structural parts in the engine compartment [1]. Since then, polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites have been successfully developed with most conventional polymers. These nanocomposites exhibit markedly improved mechanical, thermal, optical, and physicochemical properties when compared with the pure polymer or conventional composites [2, 3]. Bio-based nanocomposites have attracted significant interest because these materials have significant social and environmental advantages [4, 5], as discussed in Chapter 4. Most research has concentrated on epoxidized plant oils [5, 6]. Initial studies showed the formation of intercalated or exfoliated structures and a reinforcement effect through clay addition. The addition of clay to triglyceride-based polymers to form nanocomposites can broaden the applications of these...