Abstract
Films made of poly(vinyl butyral) (PVB) and antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO) nanoparticles (NPs), both uncoated and surface-modified with an alkoxysilane, were prepared by solution casting at filler volume fractions ranging from 0.08% to 4.5%. The films were characterized by standard techniques including transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). In the polymeric matrix, the primary NPs (diameter ~10 nm) aggregate exhibiting different morphologies depending on the presence of the surface coating. Coated ATO NPs form spherical particles (with a diameter of 300–500 nm), whereas more elongated fractal structures (with a thickness of ~250 nm and length of tens of micrometers) are formed by uncoated NPs. The fraction of the polymer interacting with the NPs is always negligible. In agreement with this finding, DSC data did not reveal any rigid interface and 1H time domain nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and fast field-cycling NMR did not show significant differences in polymer dynamics among the different samples. The ultraviolet-visible-near infrared (UV-Vis-NIR) transmittance of the films decreased compared to pure PVB, especially in the NIR range. The solar direct transmittance and the light transmittance were extracted from the spectra according to CEN EN 410/2011 in order to test the performance of our films as plastic layers in laminated glass for glazing.
Highlights
Polymer nanocomposites are of major scientific and technological interest
Films of poly(vinyl butyral) (PVB)-Antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO) composites prepared by solution casting were studied using a multi-technique
NPs were found to aggregate in different morphologies the presence of a coating on the NP surface: elongated fractal structures characterized by a thickness depending the presence of aa length coatingofon theof surface: elongated fractal aggregates structures characterized of about 250onnanometers and tens micrometers and spherical with sizes of by a thickness of about 250 nanometers and a length of tens of micrometers and spherical aggregates with sizes of hundreds of nm were found for the uncoated and coated NPs, respectively
Summary
Polymer nanocomposites are of major scientific and technological interest In these systems, mechanical properties may be significantly modified at lower loadings compared to microcomposites due to the larger specific surface area [1,2]. One main goal in the development of high-performance polymer nanocomposites is to obtain a good dispersion of nanoparticles (NPs), which guarantees a high surface area, favoring the interaction with the polymer matrix [3,4]. This is impeded by NP aggregation, which mainly depends on interparticle forces, polymer–NP interactions, and NP shape, as well as on the preparation procedure [5,6]. It has been used as filler to increase the electrical conductivity and to provide NIR shielding combined with optical transparency in a variety of polymers, including copolymer lattices containing
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