Montmorillonite/poly(vinyl alcohol) (MMT/PVA) nanocomposites spanning the complete range of MMT content (0-100 wt%) are prepared by simple evaporation-induced assembly. Effects of MMT content on the structure and mechanical properties of nanocomposites are systematically investigated and exhibit two important transitions at MMT contents of 30 wt% and 70 wt%. In the range of 0-30 wt%, the nanoco...

Engineering a safe and high-efficiency delivery system for efficient RNA interference is critical for successful gene therapy. In this study, we designed a novel nanocarrier system of polyethyleneimine (PEI)-modified Fe3O4@SiO2, which allows high efficient loading of VEGF small hairpin (sh)RNA to form Fe3O4@SiO2/PEI/VEGF shRNA nanocomposites for VEGF gene silencing as well as magnetic resonance...

This work is concentrated on synthesis and investigation of new core-shell nanocomposites of polystyrene (PS) with doped polyaniline (PANI). The latex containing PS nanoparticles with sizes of 15-30 nm was prepared by microemulsion polymerization of styrene in water media. The PS/PANI nanocomposites were synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline in the PS latex media in a pres...

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death across the globe. The use of synthetic materials is indispensable in the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Major drawbacks related to the use of biomaterials are their mechanical properties and biocompatibility, and these have to be circumvented before promoting the material to the market or clinical setting. Revolutionary advancements in ...

Surface-induced biomineralization represents an effective way of immobilizing DNA molecules on biomaterial surfaces to introduce DNA into cells in contact with or at an approximate distance from the biomaterial surfaces. Previous studies have investigated how the composition of mineralizing solutions affects the composition and pH responsiveness of nanocomposites and thus gene transfer efficien...

Polymer nanocomposites have recently been attracting attention among researchers in electrical insulating applications from energy storage to power delivery. However, partial discharge has always been a predecessor to major faults and problems in this field. In addition, there is a lot more to explore, as neither the partial discharge characteristic in nanocomposites nor their electrical proper...

Nanocomposites of layered silica nanoparticles (LSN) obtained by the sol–gel method, and commercial montmorillonite clay Cloisite®20A with polypropylene (PP) and Cloisite®30B with polyamide-6 (PA6) were prepared by melt blending in order to study their effects on barrier, mechanical properties, and thermal stability. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) showed that all of the nanocomposites p...

Fluorescent magnetite nanocomposites based on magnetic nanoparticles, a polyhedral octaaminopropylsilsesquioxane and a porphyrin derivative have been prepared. The intracellular uptake of the nanocomposites by macrophage and bone osteoblast cells, and their potential as MRI contrast agents, has been demonstrated.

This paper investigates the mechanics of hybrid shape memory polymer polystrene (PS) based nanocomposites with skeletal structures of CNFs/MWCNTs formed inside. Experimental results showed an increase of glass transition temperature (Tg) with CNF/MWCNT concentrations instead of a decrease of Tg in nanocomposites filled by spherical particles, and an increase in mechanical properties on both mac...

In this work, novel WO3-x/polyurethane (PU) nanocomposites were prepared by ball milling followed by stirring using a planetary mixer/de-aerator. The effects of phase transformation (WO₃ → WO2.8 → WO2.72) and different weight fractions of tungsten oxide on the optical performance, photothermal conversion, and thermal properties of the prepared nanocomposites were examined. It was found that the...