Preparation and characterization of melamine formaldehyde organo clay nanocomposite foams (MFCNCF)

Melamine formaldehyde resins are one of the well-known thermosetting resins. It has been observed that melamine formaldehyde foam composites prepared with various nanoparticle reinforcements exhibit better mechanical, thermal and sound insulation properties. In this study, it was aimed to synthesize melamine formaldehyde organoclay nanocomposite foams and investigate their thermal insulation and mechanical stability by using microwave irradiation and heating technique together, which can offer advantages such as faster reaction, high yield and purity, reduced curing time. Pure melamine formaldehyde foam, MFF and melamine formaldehyde organoclay nanocomposite foams, MAFCNFs prepared with various organoclay contents were characterized by HRTEM, FTIR, SEM and XRD techniques. From spectroscopic and microscopic analyses, it was observed that organoclay platelets could be exfoliated with increasing clay content without undergoing much change in the resin matrix. The highest compressive strength was obtained in the MFCNCF3 foam with high organo clay content (0.68MPaN/mm2) and the bulk density was determined to be quite low (0.20g/cm3). On the other hand, in the nanocomposite with 0.15% organo clay content (MFCNCF2), a compressive strength of 0.32 N/mm2 and a thermal conductivity coefficient of 0.065 were measured.