In our previous work, a novel self-assembly nanocomposite
process was developed to prepare a bulk polyvinyl
alcohol/silica (PVA/SiO2) nanocomposites [21–23]. We
found that the chemical and physical properties of nanocomposites,
compared to the polymer host, were significantly
enhanced. The improvement in the properties is
largely due to the uniform distribution of SiO2 nanoparticles
and the strong interactions between SiO2 and polymer
matrixes. We recently extended this self-assembly process
to prepare NR/SiO2 nanocomposites and briefly reported
its preparation and thermal properties [24]. In the present
paper, we will systematically discuss the self-assembly
mechanism of the SiO2 and NRL particles, observe the
morphology of the nanocomposite and microstructure of
SiO2 nano-clusters with SEM and TEM, and investigate
the impact of SiO2 on thermal/thermooxidative resistance
and mechanical properties.