Tubular Clay Composites with High Strength and Transparency

Optically transparent composites containing nanotubular clay up to 65 wt%, prepared by a facile “one-pot” process, exhibited high mechanical strength and heat resistance. The attractive characteristics of the composites, in addition to their transparency, include use of low-cost and nontoxic raw materials, easy scaling-up, and possible petroleum independence. The properties of the composites were ascribed to the strong interfacial interactions and the excellent dispersion of nanotubular clay.