Typical layered transition-metal chalcogenide materials, in particular layered molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanocomposites, have attracted increasing attention in recent years due to their excellent chemical and physical properties in various research fieldsHere, a general overview of synthetic MoS2 based nanocomposites via different preparation approaches and their applications in energy storag...

Polymer nanocomposites, especially polymerlayered silicate (PLS) nanocomposites, represent a radical alternative to conventionally (macroscopically) filled polymers. Because of their nanometer-size dispersion, the nanocomposites exhibit markedly improved properties when compared with the pure polymers or conventional composites. These include increased modulus and strength, decreased gas permea...

We report the formation of high aspect ratio nanoscale tree-shape silver networks in epoxy, at low temperatures (<150 °C) and atmospheric pressures, that are correlated to a ∼200 fold enhancement of thermal conductivity (κ) of the nanocomposite compared to the polymer matrix. The networks form through a three-step process comprising of self-assembly by diffusion limited aggregation of polyvinyl...

Interface issues are common and crucial in nanocomposites or nanohybrid systems since the interface area is enormous on the nanoscale. In the 0-3 polymer nanocomposites, in which nano-inclusions (0-dimension) are embedded in 3-dimensionally connected polymer matrix, enhanced dielectric permittivity could be induced by the interfacial polarization at the interfaces between the nano-inclusions an...

Polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites belong to a new class of hybrid materials consisting of organic-synthetic polymer matrix and inorganic filler-layered structure clay minerals. The paper presents the results of FTIR, NMR, and SAXS studies of poly(ε-caprolactone)/sodium montmorillonite nanocomposites. We observed a correlation between the concentration of poly(ε-caprolactone) in nanocompos...

The electrical properties of polymer nanocomposites containing a small amount of carbon nanotube (CNT) are remarkably superior to those of conventional electronic composites. Based on three-dimensional (3D) statistical percolation and 3D resistor network modeling, the electrical properties of CNT nanocomposites, at and after percolation, were successfully predicted in this work. The numerical a...

With a monolayer honeycomb-lattice of sp-hybridized carbon atoms, graphene has demonstrated exceptional electrical, mechanical and thermal properties. One of its promising applications is to create graphene-polymer nanocomposites with tailored mechanical and physical properties. In general, the mechanical properties of graphene nanofiller as well as graphene-polymer interface govern the overall...

Carbon nanotube (CNT)/polymer nanocomposites have superior properties compared to the neat polymer matrix. They now are widely used in industry, but questions have been raised about the risks of such materials since CNTs can be toxic when inhaled. For a risk assessment of CNT nanocomposites, it is crucial to know whether CNTs from nanocomposites can be released into the environment or if they r...

With its synergistic toughening effect and hierarchical micro/nanoscale structure, natural nacre sets a "gold standard" for nacre-inspired materials with integrated high strength and toughness. We demonstrated strong and tough ternary bioinspired nanocomposites through synergistic toughening of reduced graphene oxide and double-walled carbon nanotube (DWNT) and covalent bonding. The tensile str...

Three different protocols for the preparation of polymer layered silicate nanocomposites based upon a tri-functional epoxy resin, triglycidyl para-amino phenol (TGAP), have been compared in respect of the cure kinetics, the nanostructure and their mechanical properties. The three preparation procedures involve 2 wt% and 5 wt% of organically modified montmorillonite (MMT), and are: isothermal cu...