Abstract
Design of polymer nanocomposites has been an intense research topic in recent decades because hybrid nanomaterials are widely used in many fields. Throughout their development, there has often been a challenging issue how one can uniformly distribute nanoparticles (NPs) in a polymer matrix, avoiding their agglomeration. In this short review, we first introduce the theory of colloidal aggregation/gelation purely based on intense shear forces. Then, we illustrate a methodology for preparing polymer nanocomposites where the NPs (as fillers) are uniformly and randomly distributed inside a matrix of polymer NPs, based on intense shear-driven aggregation of binary colloids, without using any additives. Its feasibility has been demonstrated using two stable binary colloids composed of (1) poly-methyl methacrylate fillers and polystyrene NPs, and (2) graphene oxide sheets (fillers) and poly-vinylidene fluoride NPs. The mechanism leading to capturing and distribution of the fillers inside the polymer NP matrix has been illustrated, and the advantages of the proposed methodology compared with the other common methods are also discussed.
Highlights
Nanocomposite materials have been widely applied to almost all fields of technology [1], in biomedicine [2], dental and bone implants [3], therapeutics delivery, diagnostics, and treatment [4,5], membrane performance enhancement [6,7,8], coating industry [9,10,11], solid-state lighting, and photovoltaic devices [12,13]
A new technique has been developed recently, which is based on intense shear-driven aggregation of binary colloids to uniformly and randomly distribute fillers into a polymer matrix and to avoid aggregation among the fillers [48,50]
We review the relevant intense shear-driven aggregation and its application to binary colloids to generate the polymer matrix nanocomposites
Summary
Nanocomposite materials have been widely applied to almost all fields of technology [1], in biomedicine [2], dental and bone implants [3], therapeutics delivery, diagnostics, and treatment [4,5], membrane performance enhancement [6,7,8], coating industry [9,10,11], solid-state lighting, and photovoltaic devices [12,13]. Kim et al [19] fabricated graphene-based polyurethane nanocomposites via melt blending, solution mixing, and in situ polymerization, the comparison of the results shows that melt blending would lead to the fillers to re-aggregate, while the other two processes could result in better dispersion of fillers throughout the polymer matrix Another important strategy for generation of nanocomposites is to use a colloidal route—Colloidal aggregation. In most of these cases, it is rather difficult to control the hetero-aggregation processes to realize uniform and random distribution of the fillers inside the polymer matrix, while avoiding aggregation among the fillers Toward this aim, a new technique has been developed recently, which is based on intense shear-driven aggregation of binary colloids to uniformly and randomly distribute fillers into a polymer matrix and to avoid aggregation among the fillers [48,50]. We review the relevant intense shear-driven aggregation and its application to binary colloids to generate the polymer matrix nanocomposites
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