Our group has recently introduced a new class of materials, comprising polyethylene chains covalently grafted to a layered inorganic substrate (See: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsapm.3c00649). This novel material, that we refer to as PE-clay, has remarkable and unprecedented properties. For example, it exhibits adhesion to metal surfaces with strengths that are over 100X that for regular polyethylene, even at an inorganic loading of less than 2%. Further, the modulus of this material is significantly higher than that for polyethylene of comparable crystallinity. PE-clay shows ultraslow relaxation dynamics (https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsapm.4c04181) due to the very high molecular weight of the nanocomposite structure, influencing the process of crystallization.

In this project, the student will explore the origin of the mechanical properties of this novel material, as well as investigate possible applications. The project, as envisioned, is largely experimental and will involve use of sophisticated experimental techniques (including microtensile testing, small angle X-ray scattering etc). The student will use methods developed in the group to prepare the inorganic substrates and will collaborate with chemistry groups at the National Chemical Laboratory, who will synthesize the PE-clay.