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High oil sorption, dynamic oil/water selectivity and oil retention are essential for advanced materials to remediate offshore oil spills. In this context, superoleophilic-hydrophobic kapok bundles, synthesized via a simple, one-step and energy efficient carbonization (300°C), were investigated as effective oil sorbents. It was shown that the surface roughness and intrinsic graphite phase of the kapok bundles were tunable by varying the carbonization temperature, thereby enhancing their oil sorption and retention. Lumen preservation enables the carbonaceous kapok bundles to exhibit tunable oil sorption capacities of 34.0 g/g – 95.5 g/g for various types of oil, unrivaled among other oil spill recovery methods. The origin of oil permeability into lumen is attributed to nanopores observed for the first time on the carbonaceous kapok fibers. The kapok bundles selectively absorbed oil slick under vigorous water vortex and demonstrated distinctly high oil retention of 100% under gravitation force. Multiple oil sorption-desorption and compression cycles (up to 15 times) demonstrate a considerable promise of the carbonaceous kapok bundles for high reusability with low environmental impact.

The effects of graphene addition on the phase formation and superconducting properties of (Bi1.6Pb0.4)Sr2Ca2Cu3O10 (Bi-2223) ceramics synthesized using the co-precipitation method were systematically investigated. Series samples of Bi-2223 were added with different weight percentages (x = 0.0, 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.%) of graphene nanoparticles. The samples’ phase formations and crystal structures were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), while the superconducting critical temperatures, Tc, were investigated using alternating current susceptibility (ACS). The XRD showed that a high-Tc phase, Bi-2223, and a small low-Tc phase, Bi-2212, dominated the samples. The volume fraction of the Bi-2223 phase increased for the sample with x = 0.3 wt.% and 0.5 wt.% of graphene and slightly reduced at x = 1.0 wt.%. The ACS showed that the onset critical temperature, Tc-onset, phase lock-in temperature, Tcj, and coupling peak temperature, TP, decreased when graphene was added to the samples. The susceptibility–temperature (χ′-T) and (χ″-T) curves of each sample, where χ′ and χ″ are the real and imaginary parts of the susceptibility, respectively, were obtained. The critical temperature of the pure sample was also measured.

Zinc oxide nanorods (ZnO NRs) have gained considerable research interest due to their robust energy conversion efficiency. In the present work, ZnO NRs arrays were pinpointed to probe their electromechanical response under strain conditions. ZnO seed was sputtered on different substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering (RF) technique at 80 W constant power and 3.49 × 10−5 mbar base pressure. The X-ray diffraction patterns exhibit hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferred c-axis crystal directions in the (002) plane. The average thickness of the seed layer for all the samples was estimated at around 214.6 nm. Surface roughness and morphologies of the nanorods have been characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), respectively. FE-SEM images show homogeneous growth in different directions on substrates. The average diameters of ZnO NRs on silicon, glass and ITO were 51, 58 and 61 nm, respectively. The average length of all the nanorods on the substrates were measured around 1–2 μm. The local piezoresponse measurements conducted on two selected domain regions of the nanorod arrays had been characterized by piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) to confirm the switching-piezoelectric behavior.

Vanadium dioxide (VO2) is an interesting compound that exists in different polymorphic phases with varying characteristics and potential applications. In this study, fabrication and property analyses of three VO2 polymorphs, namely VO2 (B), VO2 (A), and VO2 (M), are described. Specifically, VO2 (B) was prepared via hydrothermal method under a low synthesis temperature of 180 °C and a fast processing time of 24 h. In addition, VO2 (A) and VO2 (M) were derived from the as-synthesized VO2 (B) using sequential hydrothermal treatment and calcination process, respectively. From the field-emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) scans, belt-like VO2 (B) nanoparticles with dimensions of as low as 35 × 130 nm2 were formed. Further, hydrothermal treatment of the as-synthesized VO2 (B) resulted to a flower-shaped VO2 (A) due possibly to an oriented attachment mechanism. Meanwhile, annealing of the VO2 (B) sample caused granular growth that produced plate-like and oblate shaped VO2 (M) with dimensions of 135 to 306 nm in diameter and 28 to 37 nm in thickness. Moreover, the thermochromic properties of the samples were examined using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) while the thermophysical properties of the samples were measured via microflash method. Accordingly, the prepared VO2 (A) and VO2 (M) samples exhibited phase transition behavior at 168.37 °C and 68.6 °C, respectively. Subsequently, changes in the thermophysical properties of each sample can be observed across the measured transition temperature. In particular, an increase in both the thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity of VO2 (M) can be observed when the temperature was raised from 50 °C to 100 °C. On the other hand, there is a noticeable decrease in the thermal conductivity of VO2 (A) when the temperature was increased from 150 °C to 200 °C.

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods have attracted considerable attention in recent years owing to their piezoelectric properties and potential applications in energy harvesting, sensing, and nanogenerators. Piezoelectric energy harvesting-based nanogenerators have emerged as promising new devices capable of converting mechanical energy into electric energy via nanoscale characterizations such as piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM). This technique was used to study the piezoresponse generated when an electric field was applied to the nanorods using a PFM probe. However, this work focuses on intensive studies that have been reported on the synthesis of ZnO nanostructures with controlled morphologies and their subsequent influence on piezoelectric nanogenerators. It is important to note that the diatomic nature of zinc oxide as a potential solid semiconductor and its electromechanical influence are the two main phenomena that drive the mechanism of any piezoelectric device. The results of our findings confirm that the performance of piezoelectric devices can be significantly improved by controlling the morphology and initial growth conditions of ZnO nanorods, particularly in terms of the magnitude of the piezoelectric coefficient factor (d33). Moreover, from this review, a proposed facile synthesis of ZnO nanorods, suitably produced to improve coupling and switchable polarization in piezoelectric devices, has been reported.

The current work investigates the morphology, crystallinity and photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of bismuth sulfide/silver sulfide/zinc oxide nanorods (Bi2S3/Ag2S/ZnO NRAs) photoelectrodes as prepared at different annealing temperature. ZnO NRAs was initially grown hydrothermally, deposited in sequence with Ag2S and Bi2S3 via successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method before undergoing the annealing treatment. The optimised photoelectrode (Bi2S3/Ag2S/ZnO NRAs-400 °C) possesses an optical bandgap of 1.60 eV extending the absorption edge of ZnO to visible light spectrum. The current-voltage characterization of Bi2S3/Ag2S/ZnO NRAs photoelectrodes revealed that the photocurrent density and photoconversion efficiency were strongly dependent on the annealing temperature. The PEC study shows that the photoelectrode annealed at 400 °C achieved impressive photocurrent density of 12.95 mA/cm2 at +0.5 V (vs Ag/AgCl/saturated KCl) under 100 mW/cm2 illumination with superior photoconversion efficiency of 12.63%. This improvement is due to the cascade-designed band structure alignment of Bi2S3/Ag2S/ZnO/ITO and to the brilliant role of Ag2S as an intermediate layer that reduced random chance of electron-hole (e−-h+) pairs recombination and improved the electrons collection efficiency. This work is highly anticipated to give contribution on further utilisation of Bi2S3/Ag2S/ZnO NRAs as a promising semiconductor material in PEC related applications.

Dynamic integration of aligned nanostructures fabricated on different surfaces has prompted the needs for a novel nanoelectromechanical energy harvester. This study describes the morphologies of as-synthesized zinc oxide (ZnO) nano rod-like structures grown onto a bare sputtered substrate and patterned microcontact electrode (IDE), using a simple chemical bath deposition method (CBD). Local piezoresponse measurements were conducted to detect the piezoelectric response and polarization switching in Zinc oxide nanorods. The morphological characteristics and electromechanical response of the grown nanostructures on the printed electrode have been investigated, as a step towards enhancing the performance of piezoelectric nanogenerators. The growth characteristics and energy harvesting ability of nanostructured ZnO on interdigitated microelectrode (IDE) were reported. AFM analysis indicated that the average seed layer thickness of the ZnO film deposited before the lithographic pattern of the IDE was about ~267.5 nm. The FESEM images and XRD analysis confirmed that the ZnO nanorods possessed a hexagonal wurtzite structure having the c-axis crystal orientation preferentially in the (002) plane. FTIR spectrum confirmed the secondary vibrations of the Zn–O bonding at 669.75 cm−1 even with the adjustment in the microstructural features of ZnO. Finally, the Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM) analysis confirmed the converse piezoelectric response of the grown nanorods.

Polypyrrole (PPy′)/zeolite composites were synthesized via chemical oxidation of pyrrole in the presence of zeolite. FeCl3 was used as an oxidant with the FeCl3-to-pyrrole molar ratio (MR) equal to 1. The zeolite contents were 0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% of the total weight of PPy′. For comparison, pure PPy″ with FeCl3–pyrrole MR equal to 2 was also synthesized using the same method. The structural and physical properties of the samples were studied using X-rays diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, field emission electron scanning microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, van Der Pauw technique and UV–VIS-NIR spectroscopy. The XRD of PPy′/zeolite (5%) revealed a presence of crystalline nature of zeolite in a spectrum of host amorphous PPy′. The XRD peaks increased, became stronger and shifted slightly to higher 2θ in PPy′/zeolite (10–20%) composites. Compared with PPy′, the composites were denser, more compact and had better thermal stability. The composites conductivity increased while their bandgap tended to reduce with increasing of zeolite. PPy′/zeolite (20%) composite had the highest conductivity value of 3.6 S cm−1 with an optical bandgap of 2.21 eV. The results showed that zeolite has been incorporated into PPy′ matrix and improved its physical properties. Keywords: Polypyrrole composites, Band gap, Conductivity, Thermal stability, Zeolite

Vanadium dioxide (VO2) has great potential as an intelligent architectural glazing system as it can control the amount of light, heat, and solar energy relative to the temperature in the environment. However, the applicability of VO2 for commercial use is yet to be realized because its phase transition temperature (τc) of ∼68°C is too high for use in buildings. A proven strategy to lower its τc is by elemental doping. Hence, in this study, hydrothermal synthesis of nanostructured VO2 was carried out with the introduction of tungsten (W) as a dopant. Furthermore, the effects of W doping on the structural, thermochromic, and thermophysical properties of VO2 were examined. Using X-ray diffraction (XRD), it was found that the addition of W atoms affected the VO2 lattice since the crystal structure of VO2 was changed from monoclinic to tetragonal rutile. Subsequently, this influenced the thermochromic behavior of the prepared VO2. Based on the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), doping with tungsten resulted in a significant decrease in τc from 66.47°C to as low as 31.64°C. Moreover, W doping affected the thermophysical properties of the samples. Accordingly, an abrupt increase in the thermal conductivities of the doped samples was observed across the transition temperature.

The temperature dependence of photoluminescence (PL) emission is a valuable tool for investigating carrier localization, recombination, and carrier–phonon interactions. Herein, electron–phonon couplings in lead sulfide (PbS) quantum dots (QDs) and lead sulfide/manganese tellurite (PbS/MnTe) QDs is reported. The effect of temperature on the PL emission of PbS and PbS/MnTe was explored within a temperature range of 10 to 300 K. When temperature increased, PL emission was blue-shifted due to the confinement effect. The gradual broadening of the full width at half maximum (FWHM) with increasing temperature indicates electron–phonon interactions. An analysis based on the Boson model revealed that the values of the exciton acoustic phonon coupling coefficient, σ, and temperature-dependent linewidth, γ, for PbS/MnTe were larger than those for PbS, indicating stronger exciton longitudinal-optical–phonon coupling in the compound structure.

The influence of chelating agent on structural and optical properties of copper selenide nanoparticle has been the subject of ongoing debate in copper selenide based material research. In this project we developed a straightforward microwave irradiation technique for the synthesis of copper selenide nanoparticles. Copper selenide nanoparticles were successfully synthesized using CuCl2·2H2O and Na2SeO3 as copper and selenium sources respectively while, the reducing and chelating agents were hydrazine hydrate and tartaric acid respectively. The effect of concentration of tartaric acid on structural and optical properties of CuSe NPs were investigated. The as-prepared product were characterized by means of an X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron spectroscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), UV–visible absorption spectroscopy (UV–Vis.), Raman spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL). XRD results reveal a hexagonal (Klockmannite) crystal structure with size in the range between 73.10 nm and 16.10 nm. The band gap of the as-prepared CuSe NPs were found to increase between 1.80 eV and 2.10 eV. The wavelength of the maximum PL emission was at 600 nm with 400 nm excitation wavelength. Three characteristics vibrational modes belonging to CuSe NPs were detected in the Raman spectra. Therefore, the results obtained in this study provide a new pathway of understanding the effect of tartaric acid concentration on structural and optical properties of CuSe NPs and can explain the use of this novel product as a potential candidate for optoelectronic and solar cell applications.

Zn–Al–NO3–LDH nanostructure was synthesized via the coprecipitation method at molar ratio Zn2+/Al3+ = 4 and pH = 7. The resultant sample was thermally treated at calcined temperatures of 50, 100, 150, 200, 250 and 300 °C. The layered structure of the Zn–Al–NO3–LDH samples was stable below the calcination temperature 200 °C as shown in powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) patterns of calcined samples. The calcination products showed a collapse of LDH structure and ZnO phase was formed at 200 °C and above. The dielectric spectroscopy of LDH was explained using anomalous low frequency dispersion (ALFD) due to the low mobility of LDH carriers. The conductivity spectra of LDH can be theoretically described according to the effective phase within the calcination products of LDH. In the comparison with previously researches, this study presented higher values of DC conductivity for all studied samples.

The effect of Ca substitution in Ba site of Y(Ba1−xCax)2Cu3O7−δ, (x = 0.00, 0.04, 0.08, 0.1 and 0.125), ceramics prepared by thermal treatment method was investigated. Surface morphology, structural and superconducting were studied using field emission electron microscope (FESEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and four-probe method. FESEM analysis showed an increasing of samples’ grain size, homogeneity and compactness with increasing of Ca substitution. From XRD, the samples had orthorhombic crystal structure of space group Pmmm besides small amount of unknown peaks. The critical temperature (Tc R=zero) decreased from 87 K for the pure sample to 80 K for sample with x = 0.08, and it remained the same for samples with x ⩾ 0.08. Sample with x = 0.04 showed the sharpest superconducting transition (ΔTc), which could be due to good microstructure morphology and better crystallinity. Keywords: YBa2Cu3O7−δ, Ca substitution, Thermal treatment, X-ray Diffraction, Orthorhombic, Critical temperature

Physical, mechanical, and morphological properties of a clay dispersed styrene-co-glycidal methacrylate (ST-co-GMA) impregnated wood polymer nanocomposite (WPNC) were evaluated. The WPNC was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), 3-point bending, free-vibration testing, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. The FT-IR results showed that the absorbance at 1730 cm−1 was increased for ST-co-GMA-clay-WPNC compared with other nanocomposites and the raw material. The XRD results revealed that crystallinity index and d-spacing were increased compared to raw wood. The SEM results showed that ST-co-GMA-clay-WPNC had a smoother surface than other nanocomposites and raw wood. The modulus of elasticity (MOE), modulus of rupture (MOR), and dynamic Young’s moduli (Ed) of WPNCs were considerably increased compared to wood polymer composites (WPCs) and raw wood. The raw wood exhibited a higher water uptake (WU) than WPNCs and WPCs.

To obtain a high transmittance blend within ultraviolet and visible regions, various transparent samples of ascending percentages of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)/cellulose acetate propionate (CAP) were prepared by melt blending using a twin screw extruder. These blends were characterised by ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and the curves illustrated that the blending ratio of 10% CAP in PMMA meets the required purpose. The morphological, mechanical, and thermal properties for pure PMMA and the PMMA/CAP 10% blend were investigated using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, dynamic mechanical analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis. The results showed that the PMMA/CAP 10% blend has an amorphous structure and low stiffness than pure PMMA. The miscible PMMA/CAP 10% blend exhibited mechanical stability below the glass transition temperature (Tg), with a slight increase in Tg value relative to that of pure PMMA. The study also demonstrated that the intermolecular interaction between blend elements has an effective influence on the physical properties of the blend.

In this paper, thermal treatment procedures were utilised to prepare crystalline nickel oxide semiconductor nanoparticles, derived from an aqueous solution. The solution consists of three compounds, primarily nickel nitrate, polyvinyl pyrrolidine and deionised H2O acting as metal precursor, capping agent and solvent, respectively. The solution was made prior to the drying, grinding and calcination at varying temperature settings up to 800 °C. The scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images allowed a detailed study on the morphological of the monocrystalline grains which were obviously observed in the specimen, showing them to be almost identical in shape and size. The Infrared Fourier Transform (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) results demonstrated a transformation of the amorphous structure at room temperature to the crystalline structure at higher temperatures during calcination process. The mean particle diameter and particle distribution were found to be directly proportional to temperature increased. The transmission electron microscopic (TEM) analysis revealed that the particle diameters vary between 15 and 35 nm when temperature increased between 500 and 800 °C. The composition of the specimens was delineated by energy dispersed X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), which identified nickel and oxygen atomic percentages in the final products. Optical characteristics were deducted from a UV–Vis reflectance spectrophotometer, which demonstrated the energy band gap decrement as the calcination temperatures increased. Magnetic properties were determined through electron spin resonance spectroscopy (ESR), which revealed the presence of unpaired electrons. The magnetic field resonance decreases along with an increase of the g-factor value as the calcination temperature increased from 500 to 800 °C. Keywords: Nanoparticles, Nickel oxide, Thermal treatment, Calcination, Optical properties

The effect of NaOH solution on the formation of nanoparticles has been the subject of ongoing debate in selenium-based material research. In this project, the robust correlation between the mechanistic growth of zinc selenide/graphene oxide (ZnSe/GO) composite and the concentration of NaOH are elucidated. The ZnSe/GO composite was synthesized via microwave-assisted hydrothermal method and the concentrations of NaOH are controlled at 2 M, 3 M, 4 M, 5 M and 6 M. The XRD spectra show that the crystal phases of the samples exhibited a 100% purity of ZnSe when the concentration of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) was set at 4 M. The further increase of NaOH concentration leads to the formation of impurities. This result reflects the essential role of hydroxyl ions in modifying the purity state of ZnSe/GO composite. The optical band gap energy of ZnSe/GO composite also decreased from 2.68 eV to 2.64 eV when the concentration of NaOH increased from 2 M to 4 M. Therefore, it can be concluded that the optimum concentration of NaOH used in synthesizing ZnSe/GO composite is 4 M. This project provides an alternative green method in the formation of a high purity ZnSe/GO composite.

YBa2Cu3O7−δ (Y-123) bulk superconductors with the addition of (0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, and 1.0 wt.%) SnO2 nanoparticles were synthesised via a thermal treatment method. The influence of SnO2 addition on the superconducting properties by means of critical temperature, Tc, AC susceptibility, phase formation and microstructures, including its elemental composition analysis, were studied. Sharp superconducting transition, ∆Tc, and diamagnetic transition were obtained for all SnO2-added samples. It was observed that sample x = 0.4 with a Y-123 phase percentage of 95.8% gives the highest Tc, smallest ∆Tc, and the sharpest diamagnetic transition in the normalised susceptibility curves. The microstructure also showed an excess of Sn precipitates on the sample’s surface at x = 0.8 and above. As such, the best superconducting properties were observed at x = 0.4 SnO2 addition inside the Y-123 host sample.

Polypyrrole (PPy) and polypyrrole-carboxylic functionalized multi wall carbon nanotube composites (PPy/f-MWCNT) were synthesized by in situ chemical oxidative polymerization of pyrrole on the carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The structure of the resulting complex nanotubes was characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The effects of f-MWCNT concentration on the electrical properties of the resulting composites were studied at temperatures between 100 K and 300 K. The Hall mobility and Hall coefficient of PPy and PPy/f-MWCNT composite samples with different concentrations of f-MWCNT were measured using the van der Pauw technique. The mobility decreased slightly with increasing temperature, while the conductivity was dominated by the gradually increasing carrier density.

This paper presents the results of the physical and elastic properties of the ternary zinc oxyfluoro tellurite glass system. Systematic series of glasses (AlF3)x(ZnO)y(TeO2)z with x = 0–19, y = 0–20 and z = 80, 85, 90 mol% were synthesized by the conventional rapid melt quenching technique. The composition dependence of the physical, mainly density and molar volume, and elastic properties is discussed in term of the AlF3 modifiers addition that are expected to produce quite substantial changes in their physical properties. The absence of any crystalline peaks in the X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the present glass samples indicates the amorphous nature. The addition of AlF3 lowered the values of the densities in ternary oxyfluorotellurite glass systems. The longitudinal and transverse ultrasonic waves propagated in each glass sample were measured using a MBS8020 ultrasonic data acquisition system. All the velocity data were taken at 5 MHz frequency and room temperature. The longitudinal modulus (L), shear modulus (G), Young’s modulus (E), bulk modulus (K) and Poisson’s ratio () are obtained from both velocities data and their respective density. Experimental data shows the density and elastic moduli of each AlF3-ZnO-TeO2 series are found strongly depend upon the glass composition. The addition of AlF3 modifiers into the zinc tellurite causes substantial changes in their density, molar volume as well as their elastic properties.

The effects of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWNT) concentration on the structural, optical and electrical properties of conjugated polymer-carbon nanotube composite are discussed. Multi-walled carbon nanotube-polypyrrole nanocomposites were synthesized by electrochemical polymerization of monomers in the presence of different amounts of MWNTs using sodium dodecylbenzensulfonate (SDBS) as surfactant at room temperature and normal pressure. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) indicates that the polymer is wrapped around the nanotubes. Measurement of the nonlinear refractive indices (n2) and the nonlinear absorption (β) of the samples with different MWNT concentrations measurements were performed by a single Z-scan method using continuous wave (CW) laser beam excitation wavelength of λ = 532 nm. The results show that both nonlinear optical parameters increased with increasing the concentration of MWNTs. The third order nonlinear susceptibilities were also calculated and found to follow the same trend as n2 and β. In addition, the conductivity of the composite film was found to increase rapidly with the increase in the MWNT concentration.

Porous silicon (PSi) layers were formed on a p-type Si wafer. Six samples were anodised electrically with a 30 mA/cm2 fixed current density for different etching times. The samples were coated with a 50–60 nm gold layer and annealed at different temperatures under Ar flow. The morphology of the layers, before and after annealing, formed by this method was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Photoacoustic spectroscopy (PAS) measurements were carried out to measure the thermal diffusivity (TD) of the PSi and Au/PSi samples. For the Au/PSi samples, the thermal diffusivity was measured before and after annealing to study the effect of annealing. Also to study the aging effect, a comparison was made between freshly annealed samples and samples 30 days after annealing.

Mercerized wood species were impregnated with N, N-dimethylacetamid. The FT-IR showed enhanced absorption at 1419 cm-1(-C-/CH3), and the 1267 cm-1 (-N-/ CH3) stretching band confirmed the polymerization reaction. Differential scanning calorimetric analysis indicated that the decomposition temperature of polymer-filled wood gives a higher thermal stability compared to the raw material. Polymer-filled wood yielded higher MOE and MOR compared to the untreated wood. The Young’s modulus of Xylopia Spp Artocarpus Rigidus and Eugenia Spp were significantly different between raw wood and WPC. The increase in the stiffness and the thermal stability of the composites increased due to the crystallinity of polymer-filled wood as indicated by XRD analysis.

By means of dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), selected tropical wood species, namely Eugenia spp., Artocarpus rigidus, Artocarpus elesticus, Koompassia malaccensis, and Xylopia spp. have been characterized. The woods were treated with sodium meta-periodate to convert them into wood polymer composites (WPC). After two weeks the WPC were chemically treated with phenylhydrazine to convert them into secondary wood polymer composites, also called post-treated WPC (PTWPC). The chemical treatment and post-treatment are successful in improving the mechanical properties of the final product. The storage modulus (E’) was measured using dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), and the dynamic Young’s modulus (Ed) was calculated using free-free vibrational testing. The results reveal that the elastic properties i.e. stiffness (Ed) and storage modulus (E’) of the composite were dependent on the type of wood species. The E’ of WPC and PTWPC were much higher than raw wood, whereas the glass transition temperatures (Tg) of WPC and PTWPC were much lower than those of raw wood. Free-free vibration testing provided rapid information about the quality of the composite material, such as the stiffness (Ed) of the PTWPC compared to the respective WPC and raw woods. The WPC and PTWPC were characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). FTIR analysis indicated the absorption band of raw wood at 1635 cm-1 due to carbonyl stretching, whereas WPC and PTWPC showed increased absorption bands near 1718 cm-1 and 1604 cm-1, respectively.

A gamma-ray irradiation technique was used to functionalize graphene oxide (GO) with alkylamines of various alkyl chain lengths. Functionalization of the alkyl chains onto the GO was confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). FTIR of the functionalized GO showed the appearance of significant peaks around 2960–2850 cm−1 (–CH2) which came from long alkyl chains, together with a peak around 1560–1450 cm−1, indicating the formation of C–NH–C. XRD showed an additional diffraction peak at a lower 2θ angle, indicating that the intercalation of the alkylamine was successful. The effects on the morphological and thermal properties of GO functionalized with alkyl chains of various lengths were investigated. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis showed an increase in surface roughness when the alkyl chain length was increased. The addition of alkyl chains on GO surfaces significantly improved the thermal stability of the GO, suggesting that these surfaces have great potential for use as a hydrophobic material in industry.

A water-based solution of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) at various concentrations and zinc nitrates were used in conjunction with calcination to produce zinc oxide semiconductor nanoparticles. The extent to which the zinc oxide semiconductor nanoparticles had become crystallized was measured using X-ray diffraction (XRD), whilst morphological characteristics were determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) supported by XRD results were used to evaluate the average particle size. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was then carried out in order to identify the composition phase, since this suggested that the samples contained metal oxide bands and that all organic compounds had been effectively removed after calcination. A UV-VIS spectrophotometer was used to determine the energy band gap and illustrate optical features. Additionally, photoluminescence (PL) spectra revealed that the intensity of photoluminescence decreased with a decrease in particle size. The obtained results have mainly been inclusive for uses by several semiconductor applications in different fields, such as environmental applications and studies, since an absorption process for energy wavelengths could efficiently occur.

Polypyrrole multi-walled carbon nanotube composite layers were used to modify the gold layer to measure heavy metal ions using the surface plasmon resonance technique. The new sensor was fabricated to detect trace amounts of mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), and iron (Fe) ions. In the present research, the sensitivity of a polypyrrole multi-walled carbon nanotube composite layer and a polypyrrole layer were compared. The application of polypyrrole multi-walled carbon nanotubes enhanced the sensitivity and accuracy of the sensor for detecting ions in an aqueous solution due to the binding of mercury, lead, and iron ions to the sensing layer. The Hg ion bonded to the sensing layer more strongly than did the Pb and Fe ions. The limitation of the sensor was calculated to be about 0.1 ppm, which produced an angle shift in the region of 0.3° to 0.6°.

Zn/Al-LDH-SDS nanocomposites have been prepared using a coprecipitation method in different molar ratio of Zn2+/Al3+ = 2, 3, and 4 at pH = 10 and different concentrations of sodium dodecyl sulfate solution (0.2 M, 0.4 M, and 0.8 M). The XRD and FTIR data show the successful intercalation of SDS into the LDH interlayer. The XRD diffractogram showed that the basal spacing for Zn/Al–NO3- is 0.89 nm compared to 2.54–2.61 nm for the Zn/Al-SDS nanocomposite. Optical band gap of the samples was calculated using Kubelka-Munk model. Due to the presence of LDH phase, two band gap energies (Eg1 and Eg2) were observed. The values of Eg1 and Eg2 were found around 4.8 eV and 3.75 eV for Zn/Al-LDH (r = 2, 3, and 4). The values of band gap of LDH-SDS nanocomposites were found to increase to around 4.2 eV and 5.2 eV. For Zn4Al-LDH-SDS with 0.4 M and 0.8 M of SDS, only one energy gap at around 3.23 eV was observed. The optical band gap of SO42- phase increased as the amount of SDS increases. Thermal diffusivity of the resulted nanocomposite was also investigated.

The use of transparent polymers as an alternative to glass has become widespread. However, the direct exposure of these materials to climatic conditions of sunlight and heat decrease the lifetime cost of these products. The aim of this study was to minimize the harm caused by ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure to transparent poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA), which usually leads to changes in the physical and chemical properties of these materials and reduced performance. This was achieved using environmentally friendly cellulose acetate butyrate (CAB). The optical, morphological, and thermal properties of CAB blended with transparent PMMA was studied using UV-VIS spectrophotometry, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, dynamic mechanical analysis, and thermal gravimetric analysis. The results show that CAB was able to reduce the effects of UV radiation by making PMMA more transparent to UV light, thereby preventing the negative effects of trapped radiation within the compositional structure, while maintaining the amorphous structure of the blend. The results also show that CAB blended with PMMA led to some properties commensurate with the requirements of research in terms of a slight increase in the value of the modulus and the glass transition temperature for the PMMA/CAB blend.

Cadmium oxide semiconductor nanoparticles were produced using a water based mixture, incorporating cadmium nitrates, polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), and calcination temperature. An X-ray diffraction (XRD) evaluation was conducted to determine the degree of crystallization of the semiconductor nanoparticles. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was conducted to identify the morphological features of the nanoparticles. The typical particle sizes and particle dispersal were analyzed via the use of transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The findings provided further support for the XRD outcomes. To determine the composition phase, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was conducted, as it indicated the existence of not only metal oxide ionic band in the selection of samples, but also the efficient removal of organic compounds following calcinations. The optical characteristics were demonstrated, so as to analyze the energy band gap via the use of a UV–Vis spectrophotometer. A reduced particle size resulted in diminution of the intensity of photoluminescence, was demonstrated by PL spectra. Plus, the magnetic characteristics were examined using an electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy, which affirmed the existence of unpaired electrons.

Due to an oversight, the data of the last column “Vs” in Table 1 was missing in the original version of this article [1]. [...]