Molecular Design of Sol-Gel Derived Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Nanocomposites

Organic-inorganic hybrids appear as a creative alternative to obtain new materials with unusual features. Applications of these materials in the fields of optics, iono-electronics, mechanics, membranes, protective coatings, catalysis, sensors, biology,...are expected. This is related to their polyphasic nanostructures, leading to multifunctional materials.     

Synthesis of Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Particles by Sol-Gel Chemistry

The synthesis of ORganically MOdified SILica (ORMOSIL) particles has been carried out using both the hydrolytic and non-hydrolytic sol-gel routes. The hybrid (nano)composites are organically modified with an alkyl or aryl group covalently bonded to silicon. Hybrids have been synthesised in an aqueous sol-gel process by a modified Stöber route, producing spherical nanoparticles with diameters in the range 50–300 nm. The size of the particles can be controlled by control of certain reaction parameters. Smaller ormosil nanoparticles can be synthesised by a base-catalysed emulsion polymerisation route, by varying the type and concentration of surfactant and precursor feed rate. In this case, particles in the size range 3.5–10 nm can be obtained. Hybrids have been synthesised from hyperbranched polyesters by encapsulation in a silica matrix using the hydrolytic sol-gel route. Optimisation of the reaction conditions allows the hybrids to be produced as isolated sub-micron spherical particles. Ormosil particles have also been synthesised using the non-hydrolytic sol-gel route, which may lead to products of different morphologies because of the different polarity of the reaction medium. Different reaction conditions were studied in order to optimise the size and shape of the particles, including choice of solvent, use of surfactants and addition of polystyrene. Dimethylsulfoxide acts as a novel oxygen donor for the catalyst-free formation of colourless silsesquioxanes.     

Anhydrous Sol-Gel Synthesis of Titania-Doped Siloxane Polymer for Integrated Optics

Sol-gel synthesis of organic-inorganic hybrid materials for planar waveguides and devices has received growing interest due to its low-cost processing and good suitability for doping. Titania is an important optical dopant, but homogeneous incorporation of titania in silica is difficult to be achieved by the conventional sol-gel process (aqueous system) because of the significant difference between the hydrolysis rates of the precursors. In this paper, we report an anhydrous sol-gel process for synthesising titania-doped siloxane polymers. The process consists of a hydrolysis of 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS) with boric acid under anhydrous conditions, and a condensation with dimethyldimethoxysilane (DMDMS), diphenyldimethoxysilane (DPhDMS) and titanium ethoxide (TET). Optical characterisations for the produced titania-doped polymer were performed, and results showed that TET doping is useful for reducing the OH concentration of the synthesised polymer and is also effective for improving the optical quality of spin coatings. DMDMS and DPhDMS are favourable in reducing the birefringence and in increasing the thermostability of the material, and the methacryl groups of MPS are UV-polymerizable, which is useful for low cost fabrication of waveguides by photolithographic process. The results of ellipsometry scanning measurements show that titania is homogeneously incorporated in the hybrid matrix, suggesting that the anhydrous sol-gel process is useful for preparation of UV-sensitive titania-doped siloxane polymers for optical applications.     

导电高分子纳米复合材料

导电高分子纳米复合材料是纳米材料研究中一个重要部分。着重综述了导电高分子无机纳米复合材料在合成技术、材料性质和各领域中应用的最新研究进展。     

层状仿生高分子纳米复合材料

自然界中,鲍鱼壳具有有机-无机多级次层状结构以及大量的复合界面作用,力学性能优异。这一独特的层状结构主要由霰石碳酸钙片层构成,并通过体积分数约为5%的生物高分子在层间进行粘合。受鲍鱼壳这一微观结构的启发,我们利用不同的基元材料如纳米蒙脱土、碳纳米管以及氧化石墨烯等构筑仿鲍鱼壳层状结构,并结合多种界面设计,实现不同界面、不同基元材料之间的协同作用,得到了力学性能优异的高分子纳米复合材料。仿生高分子纳米复合材料的成功制备,为今后的研究提供了崭新的思路,拓宽了高分子纳米复合材料的应用前景。     

Synthesis of New Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Alumina Gels by the Sol-Gel Method

New hybrid organic-inorganic alumina gels have been prepared by reacting aluminum sec-butoxide and propane-1,2-diol, in CCl₄ as solvent. This reaction occurred without water addition and without the use of any catalyst, leading to the formation of transparent and monolithic gels. IR,²⁷Al and¹³CNMR show that an interchange reaction between OBu ^s alkoxide groups and diol groups occurred, leading to the hybrid gels. Samples heat treated at different temperatures under argon are weakly porous and have a small specific surface area. XRD indicates the presence of pure α-alumina at 1450°C.     

Basic Catalyzed Synthesis of Hybrid Sol-Gel Materials Based on 3-Glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane

Hybrid organic-inorganic materials derived from 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane have been synthesised using 3-aminoethylaminopropyltriethoxysilane as basic catalyst of epoxy polymerisation and modifier of the structure.Different amounts of aminoethylaminopropyltriethoxysilane have been used to prepare films and bulk samples, from 17 to 48 mol% with respect to the alkoxide content. The materials have been characterised by Fourier Transform Infrared, Raman and multinuclear solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy.Complete opening of epoxy rings in 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane has been obtained and the different amounts of catalysts employed directly affected the degree of inorganic cross-linking.     

Spectroscopic Investigations of Polymer Nanocomposites

The addition of an inorganic component to polymers leads to improvements in various physical and mechanical properties. Various examples on filled elastomeric networks will show that a mechanical characterization can be nicely combined with a spectroscopic investigation for a better understanding of the properties of the composite materials.     

REVIEW Polymer Nanocomposites: Flammability

Flame retardation of materials has become a very important issue of concern to researchers and producers. Recently, it has been found that the nano fillers are ecologically friendly and having a high aspect ratio, their dispersion in the polymer matrix leads to significant improvements of many properties. From the point of view of flame retardancy, the nano fillers are able even in small amounts to significantly decrease important flammability characteristics such as heat release rate and increase the oxygen index. This paper covers some recent contributions and progresses to the flammability characteristics of different groups of polymer nanocomposites such as: thermoplastics, thermosettings, elastomers, thermoplastic elastomers and polyblends.     

功能性无机-晶态纳米纤维素复合材料的研究进展与展望

纤维素是自然界储藏量最大,可再生且可生物降解的生物高分子。晶态纳米纤维素是天然纤维素复合材料的结构支撑体,其多级孔道结构,手性液晶排列和活性羟基官能团赋予它优异的模板效应。本篇综述回顾了功能性无机-晶态纳米纤维素复合材料的研究进展。概述组装方法,侧重讨论静电纺丝法,细菌纤维素和纤维素气凝胶模板矿化法,凝胶-溶胶法,溶液浇铸法和静电层贴法的组装特点。扼要介绍了晶态纳米纤维素的形貌和晶体结构,提取方法,排列方式,化学修饰和溶剂等。天然复合材料的生物功能与其多级结构和多元组分的协同效应息息相关,文章以木质纤维素的刚性和海参表皮的化学感应性为例,浅谈晶态纳米纤维素微束的螺旋结构和纤维素复合体的多级结构在仿生组装功能性纤维素复合材料中的应用。最后,作者对晶态纳米纤维素在设计组装功能性复合材料领域的未来方向提出了一些设想,藉此综述抛砖引玉。     

石墨烯及其聚合物纳米复合材料

石墨烯是一种新型的二维纳米碳材料,具有优异的机械性能、电性能和热性能等,是聚合物纳米复合材料的理想填料。近年来,石墨烯/聚合物纳米复合材料成为聚合物基纳米复合材料的研究热点。本文对石墨烯及其聚合物纳米复合材料的研究进展进行了综述。首先概述了石墨烯的不同制备方法及石墨烯的共价与非共价改性途径。然后重点总结了石墨烯/聚合物纳米复合材料的常用制备方法及其机械性能、导电性、导热性、耐热性及阻隔性能。最后,对该领域所存在的问题进行了总结,并展望了其发展趋势。     

溶胶-凝胶法合成聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯/二氧化钛杂化聚合物材料

由共聚合在PMMA聚合物链段上引入了－Si(OR)₃功能团,通过溶胶－凝胶过程合成了PMMA/TiO₂杂化聚合物材料.溶剂抽提结果表明有化学键存在的杂化材料体系中凝胶的含量很高.通过FTIR测试对材料结构进行了分析,由TGA、DSC测试分析了杂化材料体系中无机组份的含量对材料性能的影响.     

聚合物/层状硅酸盐插层纳米复合材料的研究

简述了聚合物 /层状硅酸盐插层纳米复合材料方面的研究进展。阐述了层状硅酸盐的结构与性质以及纳米复合材料形成过程的热力学原理。重点介绍了尼龙、聚丙烯等聚合物的层状硅酸盐插层纳米复合材料的现状和技术发展趋势     

Nanocarbon-Based Flame Retardant Polymer Nanocomposites

In recent years, nanocarbon materials have attracted the interest of researchers due to their excellent properties. Nanocarbon-based flame retardant polymer composites have enhanced thermal stability and mechanical properties compared with traditional flame retardant composites. In this article, the unique structural features of nanocarbon-based materials and their use in flame retardant polymeric materials are initially introduced. Afterwards, the flame retardant mechanism of nanocarbon materials is described. The main discussions include material components such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, fullerene (in preparing resins), elastomers, plastics, foams, fabrics, and film–matrix materials. Furthermore, the flame retardant properties of carbon nanomaterials and their modified products are summarized. Carbon nanomaterials not only play the role of a flame retardant in composites, but also play an important role in many aspects such as mechanical reinforcement. Finally, the opportunities and challenges for future development of carbon nanomaterials in flame-retardant polymeric materials are briefly discussed.     

Reactive Template Synthesis of Polypyrrole Nanotubes for Fabricating Metal/Conducting Polymer Nanocomposites

Unique nanocomposites of polypyrrole/Au and polypyrrole/Pt hybrid nanotubes are synthesized employing polypyrrole (PPy) nanotubes as an advanced support by solution reduction. The conducting polymer PPy nanotubes are fabricated by using pre‐prepared MnO₂ nanowires as the reactive templates. MnO₂ nanowires induce the 1D polymerization of pyrrole monomers and the simultaneous dissolution of the templates affords the hollow tube‐like structure. The loading content of metal nanoparticles in the nanocomposites could be adjusted by simply changing the amount of metal precursors. This work provides an efficient approach to fabricate an important kind of metal/conducting polymer hybrid nanotubes that are potentially useful for electrocatalyst and sensor materials.     

Hybrid Pigments via Sol-Gel Processing

The incorporation of organic dyes into inorganic and hybrid sol-gel derived materials is a valuable method for the fabrication of colored layers for optical applications like filters, solar energy conversion, non-linear optical devices, and active laser media. There have been clear hints for photochemical stabilization of the organic dyes, therefore, our aim was to investigate the light stability of organic dyes within hybrid solids. Besides the traditional way of doping sol-gel coatings with dyestuffs, they were also covalently attached to the hybrid matrix and pigments were produced by spray-drying processes.The resulting spherical powders were investigated with respect to their morphological, structural and photochemical properties. The results show that uniformly shaped and colored hybrid pigments can be synthesized. The spectroscopic studies demonstrate the fixation of the dye to the matrix and the high degree of crosslinking achieved in the composite. Additionally, the hybrid pigments drastically improve the resistance of the dye against bleeding from thermoplastic polymers. Furthermore, a higher photochemical stability of the dye is observed within the hybrid matrix compared to a solution, and purely organic or inorganic solid hosts.     

锆酸钡/聚合物复合中空纳米球的水热合成

采用聚合物辅助水热合成方法, 在强碱条件下加入PAA和PVA的混合液,实现了聚合物/锆酸钡复合中空纳米球的软化学一步合成, 而且球壳为有机-无机复合材料, 有望用于吸附分离、催化剂载体、轻质陶瓷和涂料等方面.     

Polymer Nanocomposites in Building,Construction

Nanotechnology is an enabling technology allowing to do new things in almost every conceivable area. Initial efforts to exploit nanoscience/nanotechnology development in the construction industry focused mainly on understanding phenomena and improving performance of existing materials. Recently, polymer nanocomposites started to be introduced in other areas like the construction industry.

Polymer nanocomposite field attracts considerable attention these days due to a variety of potential practical applications. They have offered a great opportunity in sustainable construction/green building application due to their efficiency and environmental protection. Their use in the construction industry is still less known outside the research area. This paper is a short review of recent studies done in this area, taking into account that some nano based materials are ready to be used by the construction industry. This review covers some studies done in the polymer nanocomposite applications in construction basic materials such as concrete, asphalt, thermal and sound insulation, adhesives, coatings, plastics and in energy.     

Modeling Diffusion in Foamed Polymer Nanocomposites

Two‐way multicomponent diffusion processes in polymeric nanocomposite foams, where the condensed phase is nanoscopically reinforced with impermeable fillers, are investigated. The diffusion process involves simultaneous outward permeation of the components of the dispersed gas phase and inward diffusion of atmospheric air. The transient variation in thermal conductivity of foam is used as the macroscopic property to track the compositional variations of the dispersed gases due to the diffusion process. In the continuum approach adopted, the unsteady‐state diffusion process is combined with tortuosity theory. The simulations conducted at ambient temperature reveal distinct regimes of diffusion processes in the nanocomposite foams owing to the reduction in the gas‐transport rate induced by nanofillers. Simulations at a higher temperature are also conducted and the predictions are compared with experimentally determined thermal conductivities under accelerated diffusion conditions for polyurethane foams reinforced with clay nanoplatelets of varying individual lamellar dimensions. Intermittent measurements of foam thermal conductivity are performed while the accelerated diffusion proceeded. The predictions under accelerated diffusion conditions show good agreement with experimentally measured thermal conductivities for nanocomposite foams reinforced with low and medium aspect‐ratios fillers. The model shows higher deviations for foams with fillers that have a high aspect ratio.     

聚合物／层状硅酸盐纳米复合材料研究进展

聚合物／层状硅酸盐（ＰＬＳ）纳米复合材料是近１０年迅速发展起来的研究交叉科学。由于聚合物纳米复合材料具有常规聚合物复合材料所没有的结构、形态以及较常规聚合物复合材料更优异的物理力学性能、耐热性和气体液体阻隔性能等,因而显示出重要的科学意义和应用前景。本文综述了聚合物／层状硅酸盐纳米复合材料的制备,结构表征和物理力学性能,对制务过程进行了热力学和动力学分析,最后对其应用前景进行了展望。