I-Corps: Exploring Commercialization Opportunities for New Butyl Nanocomposites

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是展示美国国家科学基金会资助的丁基橡胶纳米复合材料研究的商业化潜力。纳米复合材料具有广泛的应用前景，包括涂料、粘合剂、药物塞子和医疗器械。橡胶纳米复合材料是可回收的，在设备制造和使用后消除了浪费。一种类似的橡胶纳米复合材料被用作药物洗脱支架的涂层，产生了数十亿美元的收入，进一步突显了商业潜力。丁基弹性体是异丁烯和少量异戊二烯的共聚物，具有优异的低温性能和很高的阻尼，但在没有交联剂的情况下具有很高的蠕变性能。聚(苯乙烯-异丁烯-苯乙烯)热塑性橡胶和丁基弹性体的共混，加上碳、二氧化硅或氧化铁等纳米填料的增强，很可能成为具有广泛应用前景的纳米复合材料。未来的潜在改进包括用单一的聚(异丁烯-异丁烯-异辛烯)热塑性橡胶取代聚合物混合物。该项目将探索各种潜在的混合物和应用的市场开发和商业化。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to expore the commercializtion potential of NSF funded research on nanocomposites based on butyl rubber. Nano-composites have potential for numerous versatile applications including coatings, adhesives, pharmaceutical stoppers and medical devices. The rubber nanocomposites are recyclable, eliminating waste during device manufacturing and after use. A similar rubber nanocomposite is used as a coating on drug eluting stents, generating billions of dollars in revenue which further highlights the commercial potential. Butyl elastomer, a copolymer of isobutylene with a small amount of isoprene, has outstanding low temperature properties and very high damping, but has very high creep without crosslinking. It is likely that a blend of poly(styrene-isobutylene-styrene) thermoplastic rubber and butyl elastomer, reinforced with nanofillers such as carbon, silica or iron oxide, would be promising nanocomposites for a broad range of applications. Future potential improvements include replacing the polymer mix with a single poly(alloocimene-isobutylene-alloocimene) thermoplastic rubber. This project will explore market development and commercialization for various potential blends and applications.