Recent advances in polymer/layered silicate nanocomposites: an overview from science to technology

Polymer/layered silicate nanocomposites (PLSNCs) offer remarkably improved mechanical and other properties with low inorganic filler loading. The major development in this field has been carried out over the last one and a half decades. However, the authors are far from the goal in terms of understanding the mechanisms of the enhancement effect in the nanocomposites. Continued progress in nanoscale controlling and an improved understanding of the physicochemical phenomena at the nanometre scale have contributed to the rapid development of novel PLSNCs. The present paper describes recent advances in PLSNCs with the primary focus on these advances from basic science to technology.