Preparation and properties of nanocomposites based on PS-b-(PS/PB)-b-PS triblock copolymer by controlling the size of silica nanoparticles with electron beam irradiation

In this work, silica particles are synthesized in a pre-cross-linked triblock copolymer with styrene-b-(styrene-co-butadiene)-b-styrene (LN4) chain architecture by in situ sol–gel method. Using the proposed method, an easy access to control size and distribution of silica nanoparticles, generated inside the polymer matrix, was achieved by varying the cross-linking density of the polymer network with the aid of electron beam (EB) irradiation. The morphological investigations from atomic force microscopy and small angle X-ray scattering measurements reveal that this technique not only allows to control the size of silica particles but also is helpful in restoring the microphase separation in LN4. Dynamic–mechanical and stress–strain behavior also suggested that the reinforcement effect of the sol–gel silica in the cross-linked elastomers was increasing with decreasing the particle size.