Enhancing the structural, optical, electrical, properties and photocatalytic applications of ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite membranes: towards multifunctional membranes.

A new solution casting method was used to produce zinc oxide/poly(methyl methacrylate) (ZnO/PMMA) nanocomposite (PNC) membranes with zinc oxide nanoparticles of different content. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy were employed to analyze the composite films, revealing that some PMMA and ZnO NP interactions reduce the nanocomposite crystallinity. SEM images proved the homogenous dispersion of ZnO through the polymeric matrix of PMMA. As the amount of ZnO elevated, the size of the ZnO particles grew larger and more agglomerated. A direct and indirect optical band gap of PNC films were studied, including Urbach's energy and ZnO surface plasmon band-resonance. The dielectric constant has greater values with increased ZnO nanoparticles loading (ZnO NP) because of increased polarization in the polymer matrix at a reduced frequency. With enhanced frequency and ZnO NP content, the AC conductivity tends to rise. The studied material showed an excellent behavior for the optical limiting by using laser sources of 533 nm than laser sources of 632.8. All the prepared ZnO/PMMA were applied for photodegradation of MB. 2.5 wt% ZnO/PMMA exhibits an effective photocatalyst with about 100% MB degradation within 80 min. Trapping experiments were carried out to determine the radicals responsible for degradation. ZnO/PMMA has been recycled and reused. It has been proved that ZnO/PMMA is a promising material in electronic, optoelectronic, and photocatalytic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]