The Dow Chemical Company

Dow Global Technolgoies LLC

The Texas A&m University System

Filmtec Corporation

Richard F Fibiger

Ritchie A Wessling

Donald L Schmidt

David J Forgach

Sharon S Whipple

Dale M Pickelman

Michael J Colucci

Jee I Kau

Thomas E Davis

Maurice J Marks

Michael S Paquette

Hung-Jue Sue

Robert J Petersen

Ja-Young Koo

Thomas F Stocker

Luyi Sun

Kyung W Suh

Zenon Lysenko

Clark H Cummins

Wenbin Liang

Mark Alan Barger

Harvey C Tung

Eddy I Garcia-Meitin

Chai-Jing Chou

J Keith Harris

Lonnie Schilhab

Paul G Glugla

Joseph A Schomaker

George A Mackey

Woong Jae Boo

Jae Woong Boo

A two step method for preparing a filler composition, the filler composition useful to prepare a nanocomposite polymer and an epoxy nanocomposite coating. First, disperse a water dispersible filler material in a liquid comprising water, but without any added intercalation agent, to form a dispersion. Second, replace at least a portion of the water of the liquid with an organic solvent so that the water concentration of the liquid is less than six percent by weight to form the filler composition, the average size of at least one dimension of the filler material being less than two hundred nanometers upon examination by transmission electron microscopy of a representative freeze dried sample of the dispersion of the first step. A nanocomposite polymer can be prepared by mixing the filler composition with one or more polymer, polymer component, monomer or prepolymer to produce a polymer containing the filler composition.

Intercalation agent free compositions useful to make nanocomposite polymers

A method for preparing a filler composition useful for preparing a nanocomposite polymer is provided. The method includes a first step of dispersing a water dispersible filler material in a liquid comprising water to form a dispersion and a second step of replacing at least a portion of the water of the liquid with an organic solvent. The resulting filler composition features a water concentration of the liquid of less than six percent by weight, and the average size of at least one dimension of the filler material is less than two hundred nanometers upon examination by transmission electron microscopy of a representative freeze dried sample of the dispersion of the first step. A nanocomposite polymer, particularly and epoxy resin composition, can be prepared by mixing the above-made filler composition with one or more polymer, polymer component, monomer or prepolymer.

A polypropylene nanocomposite composition having at least the following two elements. The first element is a maleated polypropylene polymer having a weight average molecular weight greater than 100,000. The second element is a cation exchanging layered silicate material dispersed in the maleated polypropylene so that more than one half of the layers of the cation exchanging layered silicate material are present as one, two, three, four or five layer units upon examination by electron microscopy. A thermoplastic olefin nanocomposite composition can be obtained by interdispersing a thermoplastic elastomer phase with the above-described polypropylene nanocomposite composition.

Thermoplastic olefin nanocomposite

An improved process for making a structural foamed polymer, a multilayer polymer film, sheet or tube, a pultrusion polymer profile, a compression molded extruded fiber reinforced polymer pre-form, a strand foamed polymer and a SCORIM formed polymer article. The improvement includes the step of dispersing a multi-layered silicate material with the polymer so that the polymer has dispersed therein single layers of silicate material, double layers of silicate material, triple layers of silicate material, four layers of silicate material, five layers of silicate material and more than five layers of silicate material, the volume percent of the one, two, three, four and five layers of silicate material greater than the volume percent of the more then five layers of silicate material. In each of the above embodiments an important benefit of the instant invention is the orientation of the plane of the layers of silicate material. Preferably, most of the layers of silicate material have substantially the same orientation within thirty degrees of angle. Such orientation improves the properties of the product and provides a practical way to make larger products. The amount of multi-layered silicate material used is preferably between one and twenty percent.

Nanocomposite articles and process for making

A suitably functionalized cycloaliphatic nitrile oxide can be used to convert unsaturated sites to alcohol or epoxy sites. The cycloaliphatic nitrile oxide may be useful in applications such as the preparation of polycarbonates, polyurethanes, or crosslinked polybutadiene, or poly(styrene-butadiene). The cycloaliphatic nitrile oxide is represented by the formula: ##STR1## wherein R' and each R are independently hydrogen, C.sub.1 -C.sub.12 alkyl, or halo; X and X' are independently hydrogen, halo, hydroxyl, or together with the carbon atoms to which they are attached form an epoxy group, with the proviso that at least one of X and X' is not hydrogen; and n is 1 or 2.

Functionalized cycloaliphatic nitrile oxides

A process is disclosed for the formation of a high flux composite membrane having a thin discriminating film affixed to a porous support layer through a glue layer. The process comprises the formation of the discriminating film by irradiating an aqueous polymer solution in the substantial absence of drying and under conditions which are sufficient to form a polymer film on the surface of the polymer solution at the interphase of the solution and a blanketing fluid. The film is then affixed to the support through the glue layer which may be the same polymer solution from which the discriminating film is formed.

Process of preparing a composite membrane

A reverse osmosis membrane bearing an ionic complex and a method of making the membrane is described. The ionic complex is formed from a first compound bearing at least one quaternary ammonium or pyridinium group and a second compound bearing at least one sulfonate or carboxylate group. The complex enhances solute rejection of the membrane.

Ionic complex for enhancing performance of water treatment membranes

Reverse osmosis membranes treated with polymers bearing carboxylic acid groups and optionally pendant hydroxyl or amide moieties display enhanced salt rejection and/or increased water flux. This treatment is particularly useful for improving the membrane characteristics of cellulose acetate and polyamide membranes.

Rejection enhancing coatings for reverse osmosis membranes

An improved composite polyamide membrane and methods of making the membrane are described. This improved membrane is prepared using a cationic polymeric wetting agent in an aqueous solution containing a polyfunctional amine reactant which is interfacially polymerized with an acyl halide to form a thin film polyamide discriminating layer on a microporous support. Alternatively, the wetting agent can be applied directly to the substrate and the interfacial polymerization can occur on said treated substrate. The resulting membrane exhibits an unexpected combination of high water flux, high rejection of divalent anion salts, variable sodium chloride rejection and good caustic resistance at low operating pressures. In one embodiment of this invention, a porous substrate is first treated with an aqueous piperazine solution containing a copolymer of vinylbenzyl dimethyl sulfonium chloride and methacrylic acid and then the coated microporous support is contacted with trimesoyl chloride in an organic solvent.

Novel polyamide reverse osmosis membranes

A novel composite membrane and methods of making the membrane are described. The discriminating layer of the membrane is prepared by reaction of a reactive cationic compound group with a compound bearing a nucleophilic moiety. At least one of the reactants bears an average of two or more reactive groups. The reaction product contains covalent bonds formed via charge eliminating reactions. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the nucleophilic group is anionic and a coacervate is formed initially on a microporous substrate. The resulting membrane may be useful for reverse osmosis, gas or ultrafiltration separations.

Semi-permeable membranes prepared via reaction of cationic groups with

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Midland, MI, United States of America

Richard F Fibiger