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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
A direct synthetic method has been developed to produce hybrid materials composed of polymeric matrices infiltrated with layered inorganic particles. Magnesium chloride hexahydrate and (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (ATES) were employed to produce lamellar organicallymodified magnesium silicate clays with structures analogous to the inorganic 2:1 phyllosilicates. Amino-functionalised Mg-phyllosilicates were prepared inside a poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) matrix under quasi non-aqueous conditions. Nanostructured PEO-organoclay composites in bulk and films have been prepared with different layered inorganic particle loadings. X-ray diffraction patterns recorded showed for all samples reflections characteristic of crystalline PEO and layered magnesium organosilicate. Increasing the inorganic content of the composites resulted in the disappearance of the X-ray reflections characteristic of crystalline PEO.