Abstract: Montmorillonite (MMT) was modified by epoxy resin leading to organic montmorillonite (OMMT), whose interlayer spacing increased from 1.22 nm to 5.13 nm. The OMMT was dispersed into PA6 as nano-scale particles forming nanocomposites. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), universal testing machine, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) were used to investigate the morphology, mechanical properties, and thermal stability of PA6/OMMT nanocomposites. With increasing OMMT content, the strength, modulus, and heat distortion temperature of the PA6/OMMT nanocomposites increased. A tensile strength of 76 MPa，a bending modulus of 3.462 GPa， and a heat distortion temperature of 134 ℃ were obtained. The thermal stability of PA6 was also improved by OMMT, the temperature of 10 % weight loss reached 422 ℃, 16 ℃ higher than that of neat PA6.

Key words: polyamide 6, montmorillonite, epoxy resin, nanocomposite, property