Phase formation in mixed TiO2-ZrO2 oxides prepared by sol-gel method

Pure titania, zirconia, and mixed oxides (3—37 mol.% of ZrO2) are prepared using the sol-gel method and calcined at different temperatures. The calcined samples are characterized by Raman spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and nitrogen adsorption porosimetry. Measurements reveal a thermal stability of the titania anatase phase that slightly increases in the presence of 3—13 mol.% of zirconia. Practically, the titania anatase-rutile phase transformation is hindered during the temperature increase above 700 C. The mixed oxide with 37 mol.% of ZrO2 treated at 550 C shows a new single amorphous phase with a surface area of the…

Applications of transmission electron microscopy in the field of cultural heritage

Morphology and structure of electrospun CoFe2O4/multi-wall carbon nanotubes composite nanofibers

CoFe2O4/multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) composite nanofibers were produced by electrospinning a dispersion of MWCNTs in a solution of polyvinylpyrrolidone, iron(III) nitrate nonahydrate, cobalt (II) acetate tetrahydrate, absolute ethanol and H2O. Microstructure was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). Thermal behaviour was studied by thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) and phase analysis of calcined fibers was performed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Upon thermal treatment at 450 °C defect-free, randomly oriented composite fibers having a mean diameter of 60 ± 10 nm were obtained. The results s…

Cobalt hexacyanoferrate–poly(methyl methacrylate) composite: Synthesis and characterization

Abstract The preparation of cobalt hexacyanoferrate nanoparticles–poly(methyl methacrylate) (CoHCF–PMMA) composites are described together with their characterization and thermochromic properties. CoHCF nanoparticles – investigated by dynamic light scattering – were prepared by optimizing solvent composition and temperature to obtain nanoparticles with a reduced degree of aggregation. The nanoparticles were embedded in a PMMA matrix to obtain a transparent coloured composite which was studied by transmission electron microscopy. The nanoparticle chromic features, enhanced by their reduced sizes, were investigated by UV–vis and FT-IR spectroscopy.

Biocompatible polyaniline nanocomposites build a soft interface between biology and opto-electronics

Nickel(II) 3,4;9,10-perylenediimide bis-phosphonate pentahydrate: A metal-organic ferromagnetic dye

The new metal organic compound nickel(II) 3,4;9,10-perylenediimide bis-phosphonate pentahydrate, i.e. Ni-2[(PDI-BP)-(H2O)(2)]center dot 3H(2)O (1), has been synthesized and its structural and magnetic properties have been studied. Reaction of 3,4;9,10-perylenediimide bisphosphonate (PDI-BP, hereafter) ligand and nickel chloride in water resulted in the precipitation of a red and poorly crystalline solid (1). As the solid shows a poor crystalline organization of aggregates, the energy dispersive X-ray diffraction analysis (EDXD) technique has been used to obtain short-range order structural information of the single nanoaggregates by radial distribution function analysis. The overall structu…

Effect of elongational flow on morphology and properties of polymer/CNTs nanocomposite fibers

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been attracting increasing interest for the fabrication of polymer-based nanocomposites because of their excellent properties. Traditional methods for the preparation of polymer/CNTs nanocomposites are in situ polymerization, solution blending, and melt mixing. The achievement of a good CNT dispersion and a percolation network is important in order to obtain better mechanical and electrical properties. However, the rheological behavior of polymer/CNTs systems, in particular regarding the extensional flow, has not been much investigated so far. In this work we present, for the first time, rheological data in non-isothermal extensional flow and an investigation on…