{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]],"date-time":"2026-09-30T14:58:45Z","timestamp":1790780325842,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"19","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]],"date-time":"2026-09-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790726400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100004410","name":"T\u00fcrkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Ara\u015ft\u0131rma Kurumu","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["124M562"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["124M562"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100004410","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"award":["124M562"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["124M562"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/04w9kkr77","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Conventional compatibilization of polypropylene (PP)\/mineral composites primarily improves local filler\u2013matrix adhesion and dispersion. This study provides evidence for an elastomer-mediated interparticle bridging mechanism in which maleic anhydride-grafted ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM-g-MA) extends talc-associated polymer regions and promotes long-range elastic connectivity between neighboring platelets. Composites containing 5\u201340 wt% talc and 2.5\u201320 wt% EPDM-g-MA were characterized by frequency sweep, stress relaxation, strain sweep, and scanning electron microscopy. PP-g-MA and hybrid PP-g-MA\/EPDM systems served as controls to distinguish conventional MA-mediated adhesion, independent elastomer addition, and their integration within EPDM-g-MA. PP-g-MA improved local interfacial continuity without promoting early network formation, whereas the hybrid systems failed to reproduce the low-threshold response of EPDM-g-MA. The apparent rheological network threshold decreased from approximately 40 wt% talc in the uncompatibilized system to approximately 30 wt% at 2.5\u20135 wt% EPDM-g-MA, 20 wt% at 10 wt%, and \u22645 wt% at 20 wt%. Effective interaction-volume analysis provides a geometric basis for the observed threshold reduction, while the combined rheological and morphological results support the development of talc-associated polymer regions into stress-bearing elastomer-mediated coupling. These findings establish compatibilizer architecture as a powerful strategy for controlling low-threshold melt-state network formation in PP\/talc composites.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym18192396","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]],"date-time":"2026-09-30T14:19:37Z","timestamp":1790777977000},"page":"2396","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Elastomer-Mediated Interparticle Coupling Promotes Low-Threshold Rheological Network Formation in EPDM-g-MA-Compatibilized PP\/Talc Composites"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"given":"Zeynep","family":"Keskin","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Furkan","family":"Sarisoy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8262-4786","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"G\u00f6k\u00e7e","family":"Yilmaz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2172-3139","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Zuhal","family":"Yurtbasi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0006-1239-1696","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emine","family":"Kasgoz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"},{"name":"Polyshield Engineering Consultancy and R&D Co., Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9869-8555","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alper","family":"Kasgoz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Polymer Materials Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Yalova University, Yalova 77100, Turkey"},{"name":"Polyshield Engineering Consultancy and R&D Co., Yalova 77100, Turkey"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Karian, H. 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