Epoxy‐Based Fibre Reinforced Nanocomposites

The modification of epoxy resins with nanoparticles could endow the materials with some superior properties such as broadening of the glass transition temperatures, modest increases in the glassy modulus, low dielectric constant, and significant increases in key mechanical properties. In the last 15 years, some studies have shown the potential improvement in properties and performances of fibre reinforced polymer matrix materials in which nano and micro‐scale particles were incorporated. From the existing literature, considerable effort has been given to the synthesis and processing of these unique polymers, but relatively little work has focused on the fibre reinforced epoxy composites. The purpose of this work, therefore, is to review the available literature in epoxy‐fibre reinforced composites manufactured using carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibre and nanoclays for reinforcement.     

Metal‐Polymer Nanocomposites for Functional Applications

Nanocomposites combine favorable features of the constituents on the nanoscale to obtain new functionalities. The present paper is concerned with the preparation of polymer‐based nanocomposites consisting of metal nanoparticles in a polymer matrix and the resulting functional properties. Emphasis is placed on vapor phase deposition which inter alia allows the incorporation of alloy clusters with well defined composition and tailored filling factor profiles. Examples discussed here include optical composites with tuned particle surface plasmon resonances for plasmonic applications, magnetic high frequency materials with cut‐off frequencies well above 1 GHz, sensors that are based on the dramatic change in the electronic properties near the percolation threshold, and antibacterial coatings which benefit from the large effective surface of nanoparticles and the increased chemical potential which both strongly enhance ion release.     

Carbon‐Nanotube–Polymer Nanocomposites for Field‐Emission Cathodes

The electron field‐emission (FE) characteristics of functionalized single‐walled carbon‐nanotube (CNT)–polymer composites produced by solution processing are reported. It is shown that excellent electron emission can be obtained by using as little as 0.7% volume fraction of nanotubes in the composite. Furthermore by tailoring the nanotube concentration and type of polymer, improvements in the charge transfer through the composite can be obtained. The synthesis of well‐dispersed randomly oriented nanotube–polymer composites by solution processing allows the development of CNT‐based large area cathodes produced using a scalable technology. The relative insensitivity of the cathode's FE characteristics to the electrical conductivity of the composite is also discussed.     

High‐Throughput Phase‐Field Design of High‐Energy‐Density Polymer Nanocomposites

Understanding the dielectric breakdown behavior of polymer nanocomposites is crucial to the design of high‐energy‐density dielectric materials with reliable performances. It is however challenging to predict the breakdown behavior due to the complicated factors involved in this highly nonequilibrium process. In this work, a comprehensive phase‐field model is developed to investigate the breakdown behavior of polymer nanocomposites under electrostatic stimuli. It is found that the breakdown strength and path significantly depend on the microstructure of the nanocomposite. The predicted breakdown strengths for polymer nanocomposites with specific microstructures agree with existing experimental measurements. Using this phase‐field model, a high throughput calculation is performed to seek the optimal microstructure. Based on the high‐throughput calculation, a sandwich microstructure for PVDF–BaTiO₃ nanocomposite is designed, where the upper and lower layers are filled with parallel nanosheets and the middle layer is filled with vertical nanofibers. It has an enhanced energy density of 2.44 times that of the pure PVDF polymer. The present work provides a computational approach for understanding the electrostatic breakdown, and it is expected to stimulate future experimental efforts on synthesizing polymer nanocomposites with novel microstructures to achieve high performances.     

Inkjet‐Printed Multicolor Arrays of Highly Luminescent Nanocrystal‐Based Nanocomposites

Inkjet technology is a compelling method for the flexible and cost‐effective printing of functional inks. We show that nanocomposite solutions based on polystyrene and differently sized core/shell‐type nanocrystals (NCs) formed by a CdSe core coated with a shell of ZnS (CdSe@ZnS) in a single solvent, chloroform, can be reliably dispensed into luminescent, multicolor pixel arrays. This study demonstrates the relevance of parameters like polymer concentration and nozzle diameter, highlighting how the optimal conditions to print NCs embedded in 5 wt% polystyrene nanocomposite are given by a 70‐µm‐diameter nozzle. The obtained structures show that the bright size‐dependent emission of the NCs in the nanocomposite is retained in the printed pixels.     

Interphase Induced Dynamic Self‐Stiffening in Graphene‐Based Polydimethylsiloxane Nanocomposites

The ability to rearrange microstructures and self‐stiffen in response to dynamic external mechanical stimuli is critical for biological tissues to adapt to the environment. While for most synthetic materials, subjecting to repeated mechanical stress lower than their yield point would lead to structural failure. Here, it is reported that the graphene‐based polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) nanocomposite, a chemically and physically cross‐linked system, exhibits an increase in the storage modulus under low‐frequency, low‐amplitude dynamic compressive loading. Cross‐linking density statistics and molecular dynamics calculations show that the dynamic self‐stiffening could be attributed to the increase in physical cross‐linking density, resulted from the re‐alignment and re‐orientation of polymer chains along the surface of nano‐fillers that constitute an interphase. Consequently, the interfacial interaction between PDMS‐nano‐fillers and the mobility of polymer chain, which depend on the degree of chemical cross‐linking and temperature, are important factors defining the observed performance of self‐stiffening. The understanding of the dynamic self‐stiffening mechanism lays the ground for the future development of adaptive structural materials and bio‐compatible, load‐bearing materials for tissue engineering applications.     

Recent Advances in Glucose‐Oxidase‐Based Nanocomposites for Tumor Therapy

Glucose oxidase (GOx) can react with intracellular glucose and oxygen (O₂) to produce hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and gluconic acid, which can cut off the nutrition source of cancer cells and consequently inhibit their proliferation. Therefore, GOx is recognised as an ideal endogenous oxido‐reductase for cancer starvation therapy. This process can further regulate the tumor microenvironment by increasing the hypoxia and the acidity. Thus, GOx offers new possibilities for the elaborate design of multifunctional nanocomposites for tumor therapy. However, natural GOx is expensive to prepare and purify and exhibits immunogenicity, short in vivo half‐life, and systemic toxicity. Furthermore, GOx is highly prone to degrade after exposure to biological conditions. These intrinsic shortcomings will undoubtedly limit its biomedical applications. Accordingly, some nanocarriers can be used to protect GOx from the surrounding environment, thus controlling or preserving the activity. A variety of nanocarriers including hollow mesoporous silica nanoparticles, metal–organic frameworks, organic polymers, and magnetic nanoparticles are summarized for the construction of GOx‐based nanocomposites for multimodal synergistic cancer therapy. In addition, current challenges and promising developments in this area are highlighted.     

Recent Progress in Graphene‐Based Noble‐Metal Nanocomposites for Electrocatalytic Applications

The fast industrialization process has led to global challenges in the energy crisis and environmental pollution, which might be solved with clean and renewable energy. Highly efficient electrochemical systems for clean‐energy collection require high‐performance electrocatalysts, including Au, Pt, Pd, Ru, etc. Graphene, a single‐layer 2D carbon nanosheet, possesses many intriguing properties, and has attracted tremendous research attention. Specifically, graphene and graphene derivatives have been utilized as templates for the synthesis of various noble‐metal nanocomposites, showing excellent performance in electrocatalytic‐energy‐conversion applications, such as the hydrogen evolution reaction and CO₂ reduction. Herein, the recent progress in graphene‐based noble‐metal nanocomposites is summarized, focusing on their synthetic methods and electrocatalytic applications. Furthermore, some personal insights on the challenges and possible future work in this research field are proposed.