Polymer-based nanocomposites for energy and environmental applications

Abstract

Abstract This chapter aims at exploring the promising aspects in polymer-based nanocomposites (PNCs) for energy and environmental related applications. Conducting polymer (CP)-based nanocomposites have drawn the consideration due to their enhanced electrochemical performance and high capacitance, which is mainly due to combined effect of both the components. PNCs, which include gains of mutually nanoparticles and polymers, have expected growing consideration in the academic institutions and industries. During the last decades, PNCs drawn the researchers worldwide due to their wide range of applications, and extensive research has been carried out on these materials. PNCs display exceptional physicochemical behavior that cannot be attained with single components and have been of gaining growing interest in various applications. Particularly, PNCs have fascinated exhaustive research concern for resolving both energy and ecological concerns. Moreover, PNCs provide more advantages from the collaboration the nanoparticles and polymeric supports that are on comparable length scales and the enormous extent of interfacial area compared to the material volume. However, fundamental knowledge behind the improved behaviors of the PNCs has not been discussed. PNCs are potential candidate materials in electronic packaging technology, and much attention has been paid to its dielectric and energy storage behaviors in recent years. These nanocomposites syndicate the huge pseudocapacitive nature of the CP via double-layer capacitor and exceptional mechanical behaviors of the nanomaterials. Moreover, eco-friendly PNCs deliver a route to preserving the sustaining development of economically and ecologically attractive technologies. Thus, the eco-friendly PNCs are fetching a matter of exhaustive work due to their inbuilt properties such as toxic-free nature, biocompatibility, and biodegradability as well as better morphological properties. Our aim in this chapter is to provide a brief summary of the recent advancement on the use of PNCs in energy storage devices and the environmental related applications.