Résumé
Thin elastomer films of styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene block copolymer (SEBS) filled with sepiolite nanofibers nanocomposites were prepared by a dip-coating process. To increase the SEBS/Sepiolite elastomer performances, a new strategy of surface modification of sepiolite by SEBS polymer chains has been developed. In a first part the surface modification of sepiolite was characterized by FTIR and TGA. In a second part the mechanical properties of the filled SEBS films were assessed. Measurements of tensile properties and tear strength were carried to evaluate the impact of the sepiolite modification. These results are discussed in taking account the filler dispersion and the quality of the SEBS/sepiolite interface. The surface modification of the sepiolite nanofibers shows an interesting improvement of the tear strength without major modifications of SEBS matrix intrinsic hyperelastic behavior.