Alternating current magnetic susceptibility of a ferronematic

• Natália Tomašovičová,
• Jozef Kováč,
• Veronika Gdovinová,
• Nándor Éber,
• Tibor Tóth-Katona,
• Jan Jadżyn and
• Peter Kopčanský

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2515–2520, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.251

• in the nematic phase, and that of the 6CB-based FN with a MNP concentration of = 2 × 10−4, measured in the isotropic phase (T = 315 K). The straight line for 6CB indicates the usual diamagnetic behavior. In contrast to that, at low magnetic fields the FN composites are superparamagnets; they exhibit

Interface conditions of roughness-induced superoleophilic and superoleophobic surfaces immersed in hexadecane and ethylene glycol

• Yifan Li,
• Yunlu Pan and
• Xuezeng Zhao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2504–2514, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.250

• surface with Gaussian distribute heights, and reported that slippage is independent of the detailed surface profile, and the degree of slippage enhances as the surface amplitude increases. The Bhushan group [13][21] studied boundary slip on a surface coated with SiO2 particle composites of varying degrees

Laser-assisted fabrication of gold nanoparticle-composed structures embedded in borosilicate glass

• Nikolay Nedyalkov,
• Mihaela Koleva,
• Nadya Stankova,
• Rosen Nikov,
• Mitsuhiro Terakawa,
• Yasutaka Nakajima,
• Lyubomir Aleksandrov and
• Reni Iordanova

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2454–2463, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.244

• particle concentration [8]. The studies performed on the optical properties of such composites demonstrated that, in addition to these sum effects, these materials may express qualitative changes in their response in the process of the interaction with an electromagnetic field. It was shown that embedding

Fabrication of CeO₂–MO_x (M = Cu, Co, Ni) composite yolk–shell nanospheres with enhanced catalytic properties for CO oxidation

• Ling Liu,
• Jingjing Shi,
• Hongxia Cao,
• Ruiyu Wang and
• Ziwu Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2425–2437, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.241

• solvothermal process, highly dispersed MOx species were decorated on the surface of CeO2 yolk–shell nanospheres to form CeO2–MOx composites. As a CO oxidation catalyst, the CeO2–MOx composite yolk–shell nanospheres showed strikingly higher catalytic activity than naked CeO2 due to the strong synergistic

• porous solid spheres along with some hollow structures (Figure 2e–g). After further reaction between the yolk–shell structured CeO2 and Cu(CH3COO)2 at 120 °C, the resultant CeO2–CuOx composites still maintained the yolk–shell morphology without any obvious change after the harsh solvothermal treatment

• CeO2–CuOx-2 sample is comparable to the traditional noble-metal–CeO2 system, yielding complete CO conversion at a relatively low temperature of 145 °C. A greatly enhanced performance of the composites in CO oxidation can be attributed to the incorporation of highly-dispersed MOx onto the CeO2 surface

Hydrothermal synthesis of ZnO quantum dot/KNb₃O₈ nanosheet photocatalysts for reducing carbon dioxide to methanol

• Xiao Shao,
• Weiyue Xin and
• Xiaohong Yin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2264–2270, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.226

• composites seemed not to change, which illustrates that the ZnO quantum dots did not enter the frame of the crystalline KNb3O8 and a small amount of ZnO was also not found. The morphology of KNb3O8 nanosheets loaded with different amounts of ZnO quantum dots was characterized by SEM and is shown in Figure 3

In situ controlled rapid growth of novel high activity TiB₂/(TiB₂–TiN) hierarchical/heterostructured nanocomposites

• Jilin Wang,
• Hejie Liao,
• Yuchun Ji,
• Fei Long,
• Yunle Gu,
• Zhengguang Zou,
• Weimin Wang and
• Zhengyi Fu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2116–2125, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.211

• properties will make TiB2/TiN composites an attractive prospect for practical applications in many fields such as super-hard materials, electrodes, wear resistance materials, armor plates, jet engine parts and high temperature ceramic components [1][3][7][8]. The previous researches were primarily focused on

• the preparation and performance of TiB2/TiN composite ceramics or films. However, there are few reports about the preparation of the raw powders of TiB2/TiN composites. It is common knowledge that high activity powders are the indispensable prerequisite for the preparation of the corresponding

• composites with distinguished properties [9][10]. Thus, in our opinion, the understanding of the fabrication of homogeneously dispersed, high activity TiB2/TiN nanocomposite powders is of great importance. As for the preparation of TiB2/TiN composite powders, the common synthesis routes are combustion

High-stress study of bioinspired multifunctional PEDOT:PSS/nanoclay nanocomposites using AFM, SEM and numerical simulation

• Alfredo J. Diaz,
• Hanaul Noh,
• Tobias Meier and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2069–2082, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.207

• increases and decreases in conductivity can occur for the Laponite RD composites. We offer a possible mechanism to explain the changes in conductivity by modeling the coating as a 1-dimensional multibarrier potential for electron transport, and show that conductivity can change when the separation between

• polymer/nanoclay composites and is based on the expression where c stands for ‘composite’, m for ‘matrix’, f for ‘filler’ (nanoclay), is the filler volume fraction and B1 is a parameter that depends on the interfacial interactions between the polymer and the nanoclay. The Hui–Shia model [66] describes

• free amplitude of the higher eigenmode (i.e., lowest and highest applied force). The models used were specifically developed for polymer/nanoclay composites with unidirectional alignment, thus the resemblance with the experimental results is consistent with the expectation that the coating contains

Systematic control of α-Fe₂O₃ crystal growth direction for improved electrochemical performance of lithium-ion battery anodes

• Nan Shen,
• Miriam Keppeler,
• Barbara Stiaszny,
• Holger Hain,
• Filippo Maglia and
• Madhavi Srinivasan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2032–2044, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.204

• comparable to other iron oxides or iron oxide–carbon composites, such as Fe3O4, Fe2O3/C or Fe3O4/C, which can be also obtained by facile synthesis approaches (Table 3). It should be mentioned that capacity profiles for all samples show an increase after a minimum at ≈25 cycles (Figure 8c). Especially for the

Preparation and characterization of polycarbonate/multiwalled carbon nanotube nanocomposites

• Claudio Larosa,
• Niranjan Patra,
• Marco Salerno,
• Lara Mikac,
• Remo Merijs Meri and
• Mile Ivanda

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2026–2031, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.203

• of MWCNTs on the structure and properties of the composites. The nanocomposites were characterized by DSC, DTA, TGA, UV–vis, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy to evaluate the changes induced by the filler in the polymer matrix. UV–vis, FTIR and Raman spectroscopy measurements confirmed the presence of the

• dispersed phase in the composite films, while TGA and DSC analysis of the nanocomposites revealed enhanced thermal stability and decreased crystallinity, respectively, as compared to the neat polymer. The proposed composites can find application in a number of everyday products where polycarbonate is the

• composites [5][7]. Among the methods used for introduction of MWCNTs into the polymers [8], solution-based approaches ensure several advantages over direct melt mixing with respect to improved dispersion of the nanofillers within the polymer matrix due to lower viscosity of the dispersion media. Thus, we

A systematic study of the controlled generation of crystalline iron oxide nanoparticles on graphene using a chemical etching process

• Peter Krauß,
• Jörg Engstler and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2017–2025, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.202

• annealing of functionalized graphene in a hydrogen atmosphere resulted in agglomeration of the iron(II) oxide nanoparticles, increasing their average diameter from 3 nm to 9 nm. The synthesis of multiwalled carbon nanotubes on iron oxide nanoparticle/graphene composites was demonstrated. This resulted in

Freestanding graphene/MnO₂ cathodes for Li-ion batteries

• Şeyma Özcan,
• Aslıhan Güler,
• Tugrul Cetinkaya,
• Mehmet O. Guler and
• Hatem Akbulut

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1932–1938, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.193

• -MnO2 composites was performed via Raman spectroscopy using a 785 nm laser and the results are shown in Figure 4. Although the Raman spectrum of MnO2 is generally used to characterize MnO2 structures, MnO2 structures may show different characteristic peaks due to different laser wavelengths and energy

• composite, α-MnO2 shows three weak peaks at 289 cm−1, 319 cm−1 and 376 cm−1 and one strong peak observed at 661 cm−1. In graphene/β-MnO2 composites, three weak peaks at 230, 330 and 385 cm−1 and two strong peaks at 562 and 648 cm−1 are observed. Graphene/β-MnO2 exhibited two weak peaks at 314 and 367 cm−1

• and one strong peak at 658 cm−1. The observed peaks at around 1320 and 1590 cm−1 are related to the D- and G-bands of graphene [29] in the graphene/MnO2 composite structures. In order to investigate the effect of different crystal structures of MnO2 in the graphene/MnO2 composites on the resistance of

Enhancement of mechanical and electrical properties of continuous-fiber-reinforced epoxy composites with stacked graphene

• Naum Naveh,
• Olga Shepelev and
• Samuel Kenig

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1909–1918, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.191

• epoxy/SG composites at lower percolation thresholds, and improved thermo-mechanical properties were measured with either Kevlar, carbon or glass-fiber-reinforced composites. Several compositions with SAA-modified SG led to higher dynamic moduli especially at high temperatures, reflecting the better

• carbon epoxy composites have been studied, where the CNTs are either dispersed in the matrix and/or grafted on the carbon fibers [1][2]. However, the cost of CNTs limits intensive industrial applications. Other treatments have been attempted, among these, oxidation of the carbon fibers, plasma treatment

• of applications. Epoxy systems combined with reinforcing fibers provide composites with high strength and stiffness, ease of molding complex shapes and environmental resistance at low densities. The properties of epoxy systems can be varied as a function of the molecular weight or the functionality

Oxidative stabilization of polyacrylonitrile nanofibers and carbon nanofibers containing graphene oxide (GO): a spectroscopic and electrochemical study

• İlknur Gergin,
• Ezgi Ismar and
• A. Sezai Sarac

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1616–1628, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.161

• mechanical properties because of the interaction between nanofibers and the matrix material [4]. CNF can be used as reinforcing material inside the polymer composites thanks to their enhanced mechanical and physical properties [5][6][7]. The manufacturing of CNF/polymer composites is challenging and the

• -polymers as carbon nanofiber precursors [13][18]. Graphene has several desirable features, such as high surface area, high aspect ratio and other properties comparable to those of carbon nanotubes. Thus, graphene attracts attention in science as a new class of material for polymer-based composites [23

• the PAN cyclization at lower temperature via ionic mechanisms. In addition, the performance of an electrochemical capacitor prepared from carbon nanotubes/carbon nanofiber (CNT/CNF) composites is influenced by the oxidation level. Increasing the O/C ratio improves the capacitance of CNT/CNF composites

Two-dimensional carbon-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic energy generation and environmental remediation applications

• Suneel Kumar,
• Ashish Kumar,
• Ashish Bahuguna,
• Vipul Sharma and
• Venkata Krishnan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1571–1600, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.159

• nature and it is responsible for the easy dispersal in many solvents such as water, which is helpful for the formation of various composites [50]. The reduction of GO in various reducing conditions forms reduced graphene oxide (RGO) in which electrical conductivity is partly revived. This RGO is also

• . Here graphene also plays a key role as the cocatalyst to enhance the H2 production. Furthermore, Lv et al. [125] demonstrated the cocatalytic function of metal-doped graphene (Cu-doped graphene–TiO2 composites). They found the H2 generation efficiency of Cu-graphene cocatalyst is about five times

• mediates reactions either in living cells or in chemical systems [127]. So far graphene–semiconductor-based composites have been widely explored for H2 generation in which mainly graphene acts as the electron acceptor and transporter, and hence, enhances the life span of photogenerated charge carriers

Luminescent supramolecular hydrogels from a tripeptide and nitrogen-doped carbon nanodots

• Maria C. Cringoli,
• Slavko Kralj,
• Marina Kurbasic,
• Massimo Urban and
• Silvia Marchesan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1553–1562, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.157

• with narrower diameter distribution. Keywords: carbon nanodots; composites; hydrogels; nanomaterials; peptide self-assembly; Introduction Carbon nanodots (CNDs) are quasi-spherical nanoparticles with a diameter less than 10 nm. They are a very interesting class of nanocarbons because of their

Miniemulsion copolymerization of (meth)acrylates in the presence of functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes for reinforced coating applications

• Bertha T. Pérez-Martínez,
• Lorena Farías-Cepeda,
• Víctor M. Ovando-Medina,
• José M. Asua,
• Lucero Rosales-Marines and
• Radmila Tomovska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1328–1337, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.134

• affected the polymer characteristics (Tg and insoluble polymer fraction). The performance of the in situ composites was compared with that of the neat polymer dispersion as well as with those of the polymer/MWCNT physical blends. The in situ composites showed the presence of an additional phase likely due

• composites maintained the reinforcement, whereas the blends behaved as a liquid-like material. This suggests the formation of a 3D network, in good agreement with the high content of insoluble polymer in the in situ composites. Keywords: electrical conductivity; hybrid polymers; mechanical properties

• covalent attachment or through the supramolecular adsorption or wrapping of suitable functionalities and even surface active substances [1][2][4][5]. Various techniques have been developed for the synthesis of CNT–polymer composites, including solution mixing [6][7], melt blending [8][9][10][11][12], latex

Synthesis of [Fe(L_eq)(L_ax)]_n coordination polymer nanoparticles using blockcopolymer micelles

• Christoph Göbel,
• Ottokar Klimm,
• Florian Puchtler,
• Sabine Rosenfeldt,
• Stephan Förster and
• Birgit Weber

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1318–1327, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.133

• CP–BCP composites [FeLeq(bpea)]n@BCP (1a–e), [FeLeq(bpee)]n@BCP (2a–e) and [FeLeq(bpey)]n@BCP (3a–e), the starting iron(II) complex [FeLeq(MeOH)2] and the block copolymer were dissolved in THF and refluxed for 2 h. After cooling down to room temperature, the respective bridging ligand was added and

• of crystalline nanoparticles in the BCP micelle. (2) Weak-field ligands lead to HS complexes where anti-bonding orbitals are occupied. This supports ligand exchange and prevents the templating effect of the BCP micelle. We found that the CP–BCP composites with the most rigid ligand ([FeLeq(bpey)]n

• [FeLeq(bpey)]n (3) and the respective coordination polymer–block copolymer composites (CP–BCP) [FeLeq(bpea)]n@BCP (1a–e), [FeLeq(bpee)]n@BCP (2a–e) and [FeLeq(bpey)]n@BCP (3a–e). Investigation of the core size [nm] and crystallinity of the CP-BCP composite obtained from TEM. “MC” denotes the observation

Characterization of ferrite nanoparticles for preparation of biocomposites

• Urszula Klekotka,
• Magdalena Rogowska,
• Dariusz Satuła and
• Beata Kalska-Szostko

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1257–1265, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.127

• nanoparticle and enzyme) and then respective enzymes were immobilized. For the second group, enzymes were attached without any previous surface modification. The prepared composites were measured by FTIR spectroscopy after drying. Infrared spectroscopy Selected ferrite nanoparticle samples were tested by IR

Preparation of thick silica coatings on carbon fibers with fine-structured silica nanotubes induced by a self-assembly process

• Benjamin Baumgärtner,
• Hendrik Möller,
• Thomas Neumann and
• Dirk Volkmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1145–1155, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.116

• ; Introduction Carbon fibers are widely used as reinforcement in ceramic, metal matrix and carbon composites because of their outstanding properties, such as high specific strength, a high Young’s modulus, low expansion coefficient and relative flexibility [1]. For the application in adsorption processes, carbon

Fully scalable one-pot method for the production of phosphonic graphene derivatives

• Kamila Żelechowska,
• Marta Prześniak-Welenc,
• Marcin Łapiński,
• Izabela Kondratowicz and
• Tadeusz Miruszewski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1094–1103, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.111

• derivative with polar multiprotic phosphonate groups can find its place in, for example, conducting composites, ion exchangers and proton carriers. Experimental Chemicals PCl3 was purchased from POCh (Gliwice, Poland). Spectral grade KBr was purchased from Sigma-Aldrich. Deionized water was used in the

ZnO nanoparticles sensitized by CuInZn_xS_2+x quantum dots as highly efficient solar light driven photocatalysts

• Florian Donat,
• Serge Corbel,
• Halima Alem,
• Steve Pontvianne,
• Lavinia Balan,
• Ghouti Medjahdi and
• Raphaël Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1080–1093, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.110

• composites prepared for the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants require a relatively large quantity of CIS nanocrystals to be complete (20 wt % CIS QDs relative to ZnO) [34][37]. When the ZCIS/ZnO weight ratio was decreased to ≈7%, the photodegradation never exceeded 80% even using a light source

• visible region, centered at ≈675 nm and dependent on the loading in ZCIS QDs is observed (Supporting Information File 1, Figure S4). An increased photo-response of ZnO/ZCIS composites in the visible region compared to ZnO can thus be expected. With the aim of investigating the photocatalytic performance

• both under solar and visible light illumination (light intensity = 5 mW/cm2) of all the ZnO/ZCIS composites prepared, we selected Orange II dye as a model contaminant because this dye is not a photosensitizer (in contrast to Methylene Blue or Rhodamine which promote photocatalytic degradation). Prior

BTEX detection with composites of ethylenevinyl acetate and nanostructured carbon

• Santa Stepina,
• Astrida Berzina,
• Gita Sakale and
• Maris Knite

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 982–988, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.100

• Santa Stepina Astrida Berzina Gita Sakale Maris Knite Institute of Technical Physics, Faculty of Material Science and Applied Chemistry, Riga Technical University, Paula Valdena Street 3/7, Riga, LV-1048, Latvia 10.3762/bjnano.8.100 Abstract By using a solvent-based method composites of

• ethylenevinyl acetate copolymer and carbon black (EVA–CB) were synthesized for sensing BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene) vapours. The composites were characterized using atomic force microscopy (AFM) in an electroconductive mode. Gas sensing results show that EVA-CB can reproducibly detect BTEX

• carbon composites; volatile organic compound (VOC) sensors; Introduction Solvents such as toluene, benzene, as well as various fuels are widely used in factories and in manufacturing. Many of these compounds are hazardous to humans [1][2][3] and have a significant impact on the environment, i.e

Bio-inspired micro-to-nanoporous polymers with tunable stiffness

• Julia Syurik,
• Ruth Schwaiger,
• Prerna Sudera,
• Stephan Weyand,
• Siegbert Johnsen,
• Gabriele Wiegand and
• Hendrik Hölscher

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 906–914, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.92

• several examples of porous structures and composites having excellent mechanical properties that surpass the properties of the constituent materials. Prominent examples are wood, bone, or bird beaks [1]. The outstanding properties of the pomelo peel, though, are less known. The pomelo (Citrus maxima) is a

• improvement of re-usability and durability of the products. Porous structures with a pore-size gradient have been manufactured in the past from different materials such as ceramics [6][7][8], metals [9], composites [10] and polymers [11]. These structures exhibited improved thermal [12] and mechanical

Synthesis of coaxial nanotubes of polyaniline and poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) by oxidative/initiated chemical vapor deposition

• Alper Balkan,
• Efe Armagan and
• Gozde Ozaydin Ince

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 872–882, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.89

• parabolic behavior with the same resistance readings for two different humidity levels is problematic for sensor applications, making the sensor unreliable. In order to modify this parabolic behavior, Parvatikar et al. [34] fabricated PANI/CeO2 composites, whose resistance values decreased linearly as

Recombinant DNA technology and click chemistry: a powerful combination for generating a hybrid elastin-like-statherin hydrogel to control calcium phosphate mineralization

• Mohamed Hamed Misbah,
• Mercedes Santos,
• Luis Quintanilla,
• Christina Günter,
• Matilde Alonso,
• Andreas Taubert and
• José Carlos Rodríguez-Cabello

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 772–783, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.80

• described. Thus, two different hydroxyapatite morphologies (cauliflower- and plate-like) have been formed. Overall, this study shows that crosslinking elastin-like recombinamers leads to interesting matrix materials for the generation of calcium phosphate composites with potential applications as

• aluminum oxide crucible and heated at 20 °C/min under N2 purge (40 mL/min) from 50 to 1000 °C followed by an isothermal step at 1000 °C for 10 min. 6.6 Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) SEM images of the dry ELR/calcium phosphate composites were obtained using an FEI Quanta Field Emission SEM. Samples