SBIR Phase II: Supercritical Fluid Processing of Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)项目将克服纳米填料均匀分散在基质中以获得最大表面积优势的困难，从而解决生产优质纳米复合材料的主要技术障碍。当有效的填料分散与改进的聚合物-粘土相互作用相结合时，可以解决聚合物纳米复合材料领域的重大技术差距。这家名为Nanosec的公司已获得许可、开发并“验证”(实验室规模)一种超临界流体分散(SCFP)技术，该技术使用一种简单、多功能、环保的工艺，利用超临界二氧化碳的不同寻常的特性生产重要的粘土分散体。在第一阶段，粘土分散条件进行了优化，所得到的纳米复合材料的性能显著改善，明显好于文献中的结果。在第二阶段，这些技术成果将转化为商业成功：(1)生产和基准试验规模的聚苯乙烯/粘土、聚乙烯/粘土、聚丙烯/粘土纳米复合材料，用于改善机械和阻隔性能；(2)扩大试点生产工艺，在第一年生产200磅/周的分散粘土，并在第三年生产100万磅/年的聚合物-粘土纳米复合材料(粘土负载量为10%)；(3)与商业客户制定具体的联合开发协议，以便更快地将Nanosec的技术应用于实际产品。在商业上，Nanosec的技术满足了纳米复合材料的一个关键需求，可以单手重振纳米复合材料的封装技术应用。几家公司已经表达了对联合开发协议的强烈兴趣。与韦恩州立大学以及福特、戴姆勒克莱斯勒和GE塑料公司等最终用户的密切合作将使Nanosec能够在研究和商业方面取得进展，到2008年底产生近800万美元的收入。第二阶段项目将为快速开发和纳米安全在底特律最先进的NextEnergy大楼中的位置实现试点商业规模验证，参与者对汽车和食品包装行业的熟悉将使独特的应用程序能够及时实现。与最终用户合作的“自上而下”战略将在验证后实现快速实施。

This Small Businesss Innovation Reseach (SBIR) project will address a major technological barrier to producing superior nanocomposites by overcoming the difficulty of dispersing nano-fillers uniformly in a host matrix to derive the maximum surface area advantage. When effective filler dispersion is coupled with improved polymer-clay interactions, a significant technological gap in the field of polymer nanocomposites can be addressed. The company, nanoSEC has licensed, developed, and 'validated' (lab scale) a supercritical fluid-based dispersion (SCFP) technology, that produces significant clay dispersion using a simple, versatile, environmentally friendly process that utilizes the unusual properties of supercritical CO2. During Phase I, the clay dispersion conditions were optimized and showed significant property improvements in the resultant nanocomposites that were appreciably better than those in literature. During Phase II, these technical accomplishments will be translated towards commercial success by: (1) producing and benchmarking pilot-scale polystyrene/clay, polyethylene/clay, polypropylene/clay nanocomposites for mechanical and barrier property improvements, with applications in automotive and food packaging industries; (2) scaling up the pilot production process to produce 200 lbs/week of dispersed clay in Year 1, and to produce 1 million lbs/year of polymer-clay nanocomposites (at 10% clay loading) by Year 3; (3) developing specific joint development agreements with business customers for faster adaptation of nanoSEC's technology in actual products.Commercially, nanoSEC's technology addresses a key need in nanocomposites, which could single-handedly revive the packaging technology applications of nanocomposites. Several companies have expressed strong interest in joint development agreements. Working closely with Wayne State, and end users like Ford, Daimler Chrysler, and GE Plastics will enable nanoSEC to advance both on research and commercial sides to produce a revenue of close to $ 8 million by the end of 2008. The Phase II project will enable pilot-commercial scale validation for rapid development and nanoSEC's location in the state-of-the- art NextEnergy building in Detroit, and the familiarity of the participants with the automotive and food packaging industry will enable unique applications to be achieved in a timely manner. The 'top down' strategy to partner with end users will enable fast implementation upon validation.