A review of ternary polymer nanocomposites containing clay and calcium carbonate and their biomedical applications

Abstract

Patchy interactions and heterogeneous charge distribution make nanoclay (NC) a promising biomaterial to interact with different biomolecules, polymers, and biological components. Many researchers have studied the polymer/clay nanocomposites in recent years. However, some deficiencies, such as poor impact strength, limit the application of polymer/clay nanocomposites in different fields. As a result, many attempts have been made to resolve this problem. Also, researchers have developed calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) nanoparticles as biomedical materials. The nontoxic properties and biocompatibility of both CaCO₃ and NC make their nanocomposites ideal for biomedical applications. In this article, a detailed review of the ternary polymer nanocomposites containing NC and CaCO₃ is presented. The morphological, thermal, mechanical, and rheological characteristics, in addition to the modeling of behavior and foam properties, are studied in this article. In addition, the potential challenges for ternary nanocomposites and their biomedical applications are discussed.