Investigations on the optical, dielectric, electrical, and rheological properties of PEG200/ZnO semiconducting nanofluids for soft matter based technological innovations

Semiconducting nanofluids (SNFs) consisting of poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG200) as a green biocompatible base fluid with homogeneous dispersion of eco-friendly zinc oxide (ZnO) nanomaterial, concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.20 wt%, are prepared by state-of-the-art ultrasonic cavitation homogenized process. These PEG200/ZnO SNFs are characterized by employing an ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometer, precision inductance-capacitance-resistance (LCR) meter, and rotational viscometer. A detailed analysis of 200–800 nm range UV–Vis absorbance spectra of these SNFs revealed longer stability of suspended ZnO nanoparticles in PEG200 fluid, and their nanomaterial concentrations dependent absorbance and extinction coefficient with tunable dual energy band gaps ranging from 3 to 5 eV. Optical performance recognized the potential applications of these SNFs in the advances of soft matter based optoelectronic and photosensitive devices and also as an excellent UV radiation shielding material. The study of 20 Hz – 1 MHz range dielectric and electrical spectra explained that the ZnO concentrations have a significant impact on the electrical conductivity of these SNFs, while the dielectric permittivity and electrode polarization relaxation process are marginally altered. High static dielectric permittivity (∼ 22) and low electrical conductivity of about μS/cm order, at 303.15 K, evidence the suitability of these SNFs in advances of energy storage devices. The rheological behaviour of PEG200/ZnO materials is carried out at different temperatures ranging from 303.15 to 323.15 K, which illustrates the Newtonian characteristics of these nanofluids with moderate dynamic viscosity and activation energy, and therefore, they could be utilized as effective heat transfer materials in photovoltaic/thermal devices and systems

Composition controllable multifunctionality of PVDF/PMMA/BaTiO3/OMMT based ternary and quaternary hybrid polymer nanocomposites

State-of-the-art engineered multifunctional nanocomposites composed of different polymer matrices and functional nanomaterials are in high industrial demand for advances in all-solid-state flexible device technologies. Within this framework, the host matrices of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and its blend with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), and the barium titanate (BaTiO3) and organo-modified montmorillonite (OMMT) clay mixed nanomaterial dispersed ternary PVDF/x wt% (BaTiO3+OMMT) and quaternary (PVDF+PMMA)/x wt% (BaTiO3+OMMT) hybrid polymer nanocomposites (HPNCs) are prepared through ultrasonicated homogenized solution casting method. The XRD patterns and FTIR transmittance spectra confirmed the composition dependent crystal phases of the PVDF and the heterogeneous polymer-polymer and polymer-nanomaterial interactions in these HPNC materials. The DSC measurements explained a huge alteration in the PVDF crystallite melting temperatures and also the degree of crystallinity of different HPNC materials. The UV–Vis absorbance of these hybrid materials depends strongly on their composition design and demonstrated dual energy band gaps attributed to host polymer matrices and the nanofillers. The dielectric permittivity dispersion in the broadband frequency range of 20 Hz − 1 GHz explains the contribution of several polarizations and relaxation processes in these complex composites, at 27 °C. Appreciably high dielectric permittivity (4 to 7) in the 20 Hz − 1 MHz range and low permittivity at the ultra high radio frequencies confirmed the promising nanodielectric characteristics of these hybrid materials. The interesting structure-property relationship, tunable energy band gaps, a wide range of composition controllable dielectric permittivity, and frequency dependent electrical conductivity revealed the usefulness of these HPNCs in making flexible-type innovative optoelectronic, capacitive energy storage, and microelectronic devices

Synergistic effect of polymer blend compositions on the structural, thermal, optical, and broadband dielectric properties of P(VDF-HFP)/PEO/ZnO polymer nanocomposites

Polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) composed of poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (P(VDF-HFP))/ poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) blend host matrix of varying compositions i.e., xP(VDF-HFP)/(100–x)PEO with x values 20, 50, and 80 wt%, and zinc oxide (ZnO) as nanofiller (2 wt%) are prepared by state-of-the-art homogenized solution cast method. The SEM micro-images of these PNC films revealed that the polymer blend compositions considerably affect the polymers miscibility, spherulitic morphologies, and crystalline phases. FTIR spectra demonstrated that the P(VDF-HFP) and PEO chain interactions in these PNCs change significantly with the polymer blend compositions. The DSC results revealed a decrease in PEO crystallite temperature and degree of crystallinity with the increase of P(VDF-HFP) amount in the blend matrix of these PNC materials. Analysis of UV-Vis spectra categorized these PNCs of wide band gap (∼ 3.1 eV) semiconductive optical materials. Broadband frequency range (20 Hz–1 GHz) dielectric dispersion demonstrated that 50P(VDF-HFP)/50PEO-2 wt% ZnO composition based nanodielectric film has a relatively high dielectric constant, whereas the chain segmental and dipolar reorientation relaxation processes are strongly polymer blend composition dependent for these PNC materials. The experimental results are discussed in detail concerning the multifunctionality of these PNCs as promising candidates for innovation in flexible optoelectronic and nanodielectric-based microelectronic devices

Rock permittivity characterization and application of electromagnetic mixing models for density/compactness assessment of HMA by means of step‐frequency radar

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