Abstract New nanocomposites based on polyacrylates and five types of montmorillonites modified by edge covalent bonding, were obtained. The alkoxysilanic substituent strongly influenced the physical–chemical properties of the final material. All modified clay minerals exhibit a lower wettability compared to pure montmorillonite. FTIR and TGA analyses confirmed the incorporation of montmorillonite in the polyacrylate matrix. Rugged spherical particles indicated that the platelets were predominantly on the polymer particles.