Effect of CuO nanostructure morphology on the mechanical properties of CuO/woven carbon fiber/vinyl ester composites

The effect of CuO nanostructure morphology on the mechanical properties of CuO/woven carbon fiber (WCF)/vinyl ester composites was investigated. The growth of CuO nanostructures embedded in the surface of woven carbon fibers (WCFs) was carried out by a two-step seed-mediated hydrothermal method; i.e., seeding and growth treatments with controlled chemical precursors. CuO nanostructural morphologies ranging from petal-like to cuboid-like nanorods (NRs) were obtained by controlling the thermal growth temperature in the hydrothermal process over a growth time of 12 h. The Cu²⁺/O⁻ ratio and the rate of reaction greatly influenced the formation of CuO nanostructures as self-assembled shapes on the crystal planes in the order L[0 1 0] > L[1 0 0] > L[0 0 1]. Morphological variations were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area analysis. The impact behavior, in-plane shear strength, and tensile properties of the CuO/WCF/vinyl ester composites were analyzed for different CuO NR morphologies at various growth temperatures and molar concentrations. The CuO/WCF/vinyl ester composites had improved impact energy absorption and mechanical properties because the higher specific surface area of CuO NRs grown as secondary reinforced nanomaterials on WCFs enhanced load transfer and load-bearing capacity.     

Electrical thermal heating and piezoresistive characteristics of hybrid CuO–woven carbon fiber/vinyl ester composite laminates

The electric heating and piezoresistive characteristics of CuO–woven carbon fiber (CuO–WCF) composite laminates were experimentally evaluated. Hybrid CuO–WCF composites were fabricated via a two-step seed-mediated hydrothermal method. The interlaminar interface between two plies of hybrid CuO–WCF/vinyl ester composite laminae was influenced by interlocked fiber–fiber cross-linking structures with CuO NRs and acted as electric heating and resistance elements. The contribution of CuO NRs (10–110 mM) to the interlaminar interface was determined by measuring the temperature profile, in order to investigate the electrical resistive heating behavior. At higher concentration of CuO NRs growth in the interlaminar region applied by 3 A, the average temperature reached to 83.55 °C at the interface area 50 × 50 mm² and the heating efficiency was 0.133 W/°C owing to radiation and convection given by 10.5 W (3 A, 3.5 V). To investigate the piezoresistive response, the through-thickness gauge factor was observed at 0.312 during Joule heating applied by 2 A, compared with 0.639 at an ambient air temperature for CuO 110 mM concentration. The morphology and crystallinity of CuO NRs were investigated using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction analyses, respectively. The temperature dependence of hybrid CuO–WCF composite laminates’ storage moduli were analyzed using a dynamic mechanical analyzer. These characterizations showed that the interlaminar interface, combined with the high specific surface area of CuO NRs, provided the electron traps for electrical conduction around multiple WCF junctions and adjacent cross-linked laminae.     

Multifunctional CuO nanowire embodied structural supercapacitor based on woven carbon fiber/ionic liquid–polyester resin

Novel structural supercapacitors based on CuO nanowires and woven carbon fiber (WCF) has been developed for the first time employing vacuum assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM) process. The growth of CuO nanowires on WCF is an efficient process and can be used in structural capacitors which can trigger the electric vehicle industries toward a new direction. The specific surface area of the carbon fiber was enhanced by NaOH etching (41.36 m² g⁻¹) and by growing CuO nanowires (132.85 m² g⁻¹) on the surface of the WCF. The specific capacitance of the CuO–WCF based supercapacitor was 2.48 F g⁻¹, compared with 0.16 F g⁻¹ for the bare WCF-based supercapacitor. The usage of ionic liquid and lithium salt improved the capacitance to 5.40 and 6.75 F g⁻¹ with lowest ESR and R_p values of 133 and 1240 Ω along with improving mechanical properties within an acceptable range. The energy and power densities were also increased up to 106.04 mW h kg⁻¹ and 12.57 W kg⁻¹. Thus, this study demonstrated that growing CuO nanowires on the surface of WCF is a novel approach to improve multifunctionality that could be exploited in diverse applications such as electric cars, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and portable electronic devices.     

Influence of carbon precursors on thermal plasma assisted synthesis of SiC nanoparticles

Nanosized SiC was synthesized by solid state method using silicon and carbon powders followed by non-transferred arc thermal plasma processing. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis revealed that activated carbon has highest reactivity while graphite has lowest activity in the crystallization of SiC through solid state method. The reactivity was dependent on surface area of carbon source and activated carbon with highest surface area (590.18 m² g⁻¹) showed highest reactivity, whereas graphite with least surface area (15.69 m² g⁻¹) showed lowest reactivity. The free silicon content was decreased with increasing reaction time as well as carbon mole ratio. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) study showed that the shape and size of synthesized SiC depends on the shape and size of carbon source. SiC nanoparticles within 500 nm were formed for carbon black while bigger particles (∼5 μm) were formed for activated carbon and graphite. Plasma processing of these solid–solid synthesized SiC resulted into the formation of well dispersed, ultrafine SiC nanoparticles (30–40 nm) without any structural modification. Thermal plasma processing resulted into the increase in crystallite size of SiC.     

Performance evaluation of ZnO–CuO hetero junction solid state room temperature ethanol sensor

A semiconductor ethanol sensor was developed using ZnO–CuO and its performance was evaluated at room temperature. Hetero-junction sensor was made of ZnO–CuO nanoparticles for sensing alcohol at room temperature. Nanoparticles were prepared by hydrothermal method and optimized with different weight ratios. Sensor characteristics were linear for the concentration range of 150–250 ppm. Composite materials of ZnO–CuO were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). ZnO–CuO (1:1) material showed maximum sensor response (S = R_air/R_alcohol) of 3.32 ± 0.1 toward 200 ppm of alcohol vapor at room temperature. The response and recovery times were measured to be 62 and 83 s, respectively. The linearity R² of the sensor response was 0.9026. The sensing materials ZnO–CuO (1:1) provide a simple, rapid and highly sensitive alcohol gas sensor operating at room temperature.     

Low temperature synthesis of seed mediated CuO bundle of nanowires,their structural characterisation and cholesterol detection

In this study, we have successfully synthesised CuO bundle of nanowires using simple, cheap and low temperature hydrothermal growth method. The growth parameters such as precursor concentration and time for duration of growth were optimised. The field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) has demonstrated that the CuO bundles of nanowires are highly dense, uniform and perpendicularly oriented to the substrate. The high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) has demonstrated that the CuO nanostructures consist of bundle of nanowires and their growth pattern is along the [010] direction. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique described that CuO bundle of nanowires possess the monoclinic crystal phase. The surface and chemical composition analyses were carried out with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique and the obtained results suggested the pure crystal state of CuO nanostructures. In addition, the CuO nanowires were used for the cholesterol sensing application by immobilising the cholesterol oxidase through electrostatic attraction. The infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy study has also revealed that CuO nanostructures are consisting of only CuO bonding and has also shown the possible interaction of cholesterol oxidase with the sharp edge surface of CuO bundle of nanowires. The proposed cholesterol sensor has demonstrated the wide range of detection of cholesterol with good sensitivity of 33.88 ± 0.96 mV/decade. Moreover, the CuO bundle of nanowires based sensor electrode has revealed good repeatability, reproducibility, stability, selectivity and a fast response time of less than 10 s. The cholesterol sensor based on the immobilised cholesterol oxidase has good potential applicability for the determination of cholesterol from the human serum and other biological samples.     

The effect of HNO3 on morphology,phase transformation,and luminescence properties of LaPO4:Eu3+ phosphors

LaPO₄:Eu³⁺ powders with different morphologies were hydrothermally constructed by adjusting the amount of HNO₃ without using a catalyst, surfactant, or template. The as-prepared products were characterized by photoluminescence spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high resolution-transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared (IR) spectra, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The SEM study revealed that the amount of HNO₃ played a crucial role in the morphology of the final products. The XRD results indicated that the as-prepared samples were in the monoclinic phase when 3 mL of HNO₃ was used. The HR-TEM micrographs and SAED results demonstrated that the prepared nanorods were single and crystalline in nature with HNO₃, and that they grew preferentially along the [0 1 2] direction. The emission spectra showed that the LaPO₄:Eu³⁺ samples had the strongest emission intensity when prepared with HNO₃.     

Growth of the Zn1−xMnxO alloy by the MOCVD technique

Single-phase thin films of the diluted magnetic semiconductor Zn_1−xMn_xO have been grown by the MOCVD technique. Depositions have been done at T = 450 °C on fused silica and (0 0 0 1) sapphire substrates. Layers on silica exhibit polycrystalline structure with [0 0 1] preferential orientation while Zn_1−xMn_xO films are (0 0 0 1) epitaxially grown on c-sapphire with the epitaxy relation: 30° rotation of the Zn_1−xMn_xO [1 0 0] direction with respect to the [1 0 0] of the substrate. The manganese content varies in the (0–30%) range and is always higher in samples grown on sapphire substrates under the same conditions. Variations of a and c lattice parameters, assessed by X-ray diffraction, follow Vegard's law and attest to the incorporation of substitutional Mn²⁺ ions. Hall effect measurements show a decrease of the mobility with the incorporation of manganese in ZnO, and optical transmission results present the shift of the absorption edge towards higher energies.     

Fabrication of flower-like ZnO microstructures from ZnO nanorods and their photoluminescence properties

In the present work, we reported a novel method for the synthesis of well-dispersed flower-like ZnO microstructures derived from highly regulated, well-dispersed ZnO nanorods by using low temperature (100 °C) hydrothermal process and without using any additional surfactant, organic solvents or catalytic agent. The phase and structural analysis were carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD) which confirms the high crystal quality of ZnO with hexagonal (wurtzite-type) crystal structure. The morphological and structural analyses were carried out by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) which indicate the formation of well-dispersed ZnO nanorods as well as flower-like ZnO. It has been shown that flower-like ZnO is made up of dozen of ZnO nanorods building block units. The high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and their corresponding selected area electron diffraction (SAED) pattern show that both ZnO nanorods and flower-like ZnO microstructures are single crystalline in nature and preferentially grow along [0 0 0 1] direction. Their optical property was characterized by photoluminescence spectroscopy; shows ZnO nanorods have only violet emission and no other emission while flower-like ZnO microstructures have a weak violet emission and a strong visible emission. A plausible growth mechanism of ZnO nanorods as well as flower-like ZnO microstructures has been given.     

Electrochemical formation of anisotropic periodic grooves on InP for quantum wire laser growth

We report on an electrochemical process whereby regular, ordered and periodic V-grooves are etched into an InP(0 0 1) surface during constant potential anodization in a 1 mol dm⁻³ KOH solution in dark conditions. Transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were employed to characterize the morphological changes induced by the etch process. V-grooves with a periodicity of 0.15 μm were observed delineated by the {1 1 1} etch-stop planes and are preferentially elongated in the [1 1 0] direction. X-ray photoelectron and reflection anisotropy spectroscopies show that the terminating faces of the grooves are very ordered and In-rich. It is hoped that such textured surfaces can be employed in the realization of massively parallel quantum wire laser growth.     

Flame synthesis of carbon nano onions using liquefied petroleum gas without catalyst

Densely agglomerated, high specific surface area carbon nano onions with diameter of 30–40 nm have been synthesized. Liquefied petroleum gas and air mixtures produced carbon nano onions in diffusion flames without catalyst. The optimized oxidant to fuel ratio which produces carbon nano onions has been found to be 0.1 slpm/slpm. The experiment yielded 70% pure carbon nano onions with a rate of 5 g/h. X-ray diffraction, high-resolution electron microscopy and Raman spectrum reveal the densely packed sp² hybridized carbon with (002) semi-crystalline hexagonal graphite reflection. The carbon nano onions are thermally stable up to 600 °C.     

Dimensions controllable synthesis of silver Nano-morphologies via moderate one step methodology

The common polyol techniques were used for the synthesis of solo metallic morphology. Here we reported the single-step polyol-solvothermal strategy for the synthesis of zero, one, two, and three-dimension silver structure by simply switching the reaction pressure with the help of silver amount and halide ions. Silver seeds in the presence of Cl^- ion, at 74.1 mmHg grow in [1 1 1] and at 97.4 mmHg grow in [1 1 0] direction for the formation of 0D-Ag and 1D-Ag respectively, by protecting (1 0 0) facet. Extra halide (Br^-) presence at 93.2 mmHg imposes the seeds to grow [1 1 0], [1 0 0] direction for 2D-Ag, while at 97.4 mmHg grow only in [1 0 0] direction for 3D-Ag, due to etching and formation of single crystal seeds. This closed reaction system doesn’t need any kind of oxygen scavengers, inert gases, nor need to tune injection speed and stirring speed. This switching strategy can be implemented for the synthesis of other metallic morphologies.     

Synthesis and characterization of V,Mo and Nb incorporated micro–mesoporous MCM-41 materials

Highly microporous metal-MCM-41 ordered mesoporous structure catalysts having different metal/Si (V, Mo, Nb) atomic ratios and combinations of metal sources were hydrothermally synthesized. The structural properties estimated using different techniques were found to be in agreement with each other. Metals were successfully incorporated into MCM-41 without deteriorating the ordered hexagonal structure. The metal ions in the synthesis solutions probably settled on the hydrophilic end of the template hence the metal incorporation resulted improvements in the micropore structure. Low loading of metals caused an increase in the surface area and pore volume values of the catalysts. The highest total (1310 m² g^?1) and micropore surface area values (1083 m² g^?1) were obtained by Nb incorporation. The micro- and mesopore dimensions of MCM-41 increased from 0.5 to 1.1 nm and from 2.5 to 2.8 nm, respectively, with metal incorporation. Low V/Si ratios and presence of Nb in the starting solution enhanced narrow mesopore size distribution. The pore dimension and wall thickness values estimated from nitrogen adsorption and X-ray diffraction methods were consistent with the corresponding values obtained using transmission electron microscopy.     

Study on optical weak absorption of borate crystals

Borate crystal is an important type of nonlinear optical crystals used in frequency conversion in all-solid-state lasers. Especially, LiB₃O₅ (LBO), CsB₃O₅ (CBO) and CsLiB₆O₁₀ (CLBO) are the most advanced. Although these borate crystals are all constructed by the same anionic group-(B₃O₇)⁵⁻, they show different nonlinear optical properties. In this study, bulk weak absorption values of three borate crystals have been studied at 1064 nm by a photothermal common-path interferometer. The bulk weak absorption values of them along [1 0 0], [0 1 0] and [0 0 1] directions were obtained, respectively, to be approximately 17.5 ppm cm⁻¹, 15 ppm cm⁻¹ and 20 ppm cm⁻¹ (LBO); 80 ppm cm⁻¹, 100 ppm cm⁻¹ and 40 ppm cm⁻¹ (CBO); 600 ppm cm⁻¹, 600 ppm cm⁻¹ and 150 ppm cm⁻¹ (CLBO) at 1064 nm. The results showed an obvious discrepancy of the values of these crystals along three axis directions. A correlation between the bulk weak absorption property and crystal intrinsic structure was then discussed. It is found that the bulk weak absorption values strongly depend on the interstitial area surrounded by the B–O frames. The interstitial area is larger, the bulk weak absorption value is higher.     

Producing CuO and ZnO composite thin films using the spin coating method on microscope glasses

In this work, we have presented a new route to produce pure ZnO and composite ZnO-CuO thin films. In the process we have started with pure ZnO thin films and ended up with CuO by doping Cu in various percentages, ranging from 0% to 100%. We have managed to attain crystal phases in all doping concentrations. All the produced thin films have been crystallized at the annealing temperatures of 600 and 700 °C for 6 h. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra have been performed to see the formation of crystal phases of all pure ZnO and composite ZnO-CuO thin films. These give insight that the two crystal phases related to ZnO and CuO stayed together within the thin film matrices, which were produced in different doping concentrations, i.e. nZnO + mCuO (0 ≤ n, m ≤ 100%). The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs and UV–vis absorption spectra have also been taken to elucidate the structure and composition of the all films.     

Ab initio study of electronic structures of InAs and GaSb nanowires along various crystallographic orientations

InAs and GaSb nanowires oriented along different crystallographic axes—the [0 0 1], [1 0 1] and [1 1 1] directions of zinc-blende structure—have been studied utilizing a first-principles derived nonlocal screened atomic pseudopotential theory, to investigate the band structure, polarization ratio and effective masses of these semiconductor nanowires and their dependences on the wire lateral size and axis orientation. The band energy dispersion over entire Brillouin zone and orbital energy are determined and found to exhibit different characteristics for three types of wires. There is an explicit dispersion hump in the conduction bands of [0 0 1] nanowires with two larger diameters and [1 0 1] nanowires with the smallest diameter considered. Moreover, the [1 1 1] nanowires are shown to exhibit very different orbital energy for the maximum valence state at the zone-boundary point, compared with [0 0 1] and [1 0 1] nanowires. These differences present significant and detailed insight for experimental determination of the band structure in InAs and GaSb nanowires. Furthermore, we study the polarization ratio of these nanowires for different orientations. Our calculation results indicate that, for the same lateral size, the [1 1 1] nanowires give extraordinarily higher polarization ratio compared to nanowires along the other two directions, and at the same time have larger band-edge photoluminescence transition intensity. Consequently, the [1 1 1] nanowires are predicted to be better suitable for optoelectronic applications. We also significantly find that polarization ratio and transition intensity displays different varying trend of dependence on lateral size of nanowires. Specially, the calculated polarization ratio is shown to increase with the decreasing size, which is opposite to the behavior displayed by the optical transition intensity. The predicted polarization ratios of [1 0 1] and [1 1 1] nanowires for 10.6 Å diameter approach the limit of 100%. In addition, the electron and hole masses for InAs and GaSb nanowires with different crystallographic axes have been calculated. For the [1 0 1] and [1 1 1] oriented nanowires, the hole masses are predicted to be around 0.1–0.2 m₀, which are notably smaller than the values (∼0.5 m₀) along the same direction for their bulk counterparts. Thus, we demonstrates an inspired possibility of obtaining a high hole mobility in nanowires that is not available in bulk. The small hole mobility is interpreted as to be associated with the strong electronic band mixing in nanowires.     

High surface area nanocrystalline hausmannite synthesized by a solvent-free route

Nanocrystalline high surface area Mn₃O₄ powder was obtained at low temperature by a solvent-free route. The precursor was a mixture of manganese (II) acetate, 3,6,9-trioxadecanoic acid (TODA) and ammonium acetate that were intimately mixed by grounding in an agate mortar. Nanocrystalline Mn₃O₄ was obtained by thermal treatment at 120 °C. Powder X-ray diffraction, selected area electron diffraction, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier transformed infrared characterization confirmed the formation of the hausmannite phase. The as-prepared mesoporous material has high specific surface area (120 m² g^?1). The performances of tape casted Mn₃O₄ nanopowder electrodes were investigated as anode material for lithium ion batteries. High capacity values were achieved at diverse C rates. Capacity fading was found to be dependent on the upper cut off voltage, the presence of a plateau at 2.25 V vs. Li⁺/Li being detrimental for long term cyclability.     

Three-dimensional graphene/polyaniline composite material for high-performance supercapacitor applications

A novel three-dimensional (3D) graphene/polyaniline nanocomposite material which is synthesized using in situ polymerization of aniline monomer on the graphene surface is reported as an electrode for supercapacitors. The morphology and structure of the material are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical properties of the resulting materials are systematically studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and constant current charge–discharge tests. A high gravimetric capacitance of 463 F g^?1 at a scan rate of 1 mV s^?1 is obtained by means of CVs with 3 mol L^?1 KOH as the electrolyte. In addition, the composite material shows only 9.4% capacity loss after 500 cycles, indicating better cyclic stability for supercapacitor applications. The high specific surface area, large mesopore volume and three-dimensional nanoporous structure of 3D graphene could contribute to the high specific capacitance and good cyclic life.     

Electromechanical properties of [0 0 1], [0 1 1] and [1 1 1] oriented Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3–0.32PbTiO3 crystals under uniaxial stress

The electric field and the stress induced strain and polarization responses of [0 0 1], [0 1 1] and [1 1 1] oriented Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃–0.32PbTiO₃ (PMN–0.32PT) relaxor ferroelectric single crystals have been systematically investigated by experimental study. The responses of [0 0 1] oriented single crystal to stress cycle and electric field are explained by polarization rotation and phase transformations mechanism. However, the responses of [0 1 1] and [1 1 1] oriented single crystal should be explained by domain switching. The differences of strain and polarization between the minimum and maximal values of electric field in [0 0 1] orientation firstly increase then decrease with enhancing of compressive stress.     

Structural characterization of β-SiC nanowires synthesized by direct heating method

Crystal structure of β-SiC nanowires was investigated using Raman spectroscopy, FT-IR, XRD, transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction. Cubic β-SiC nanowires were synthesized by heating NiO catalyzed Si substrates with WO₃ and graphite mixed powders in the growth temperature of 1000–1100 °C. HRTEM image showed atomic arrangements of the grown SiC nanowires with a main growth direction of [111]. Raman spectra showed two characteristic peaks at 796 cm^− 1 and 968 cm^− 1, which are corresponding to transversal optic mode and longitudinal optic mode of β-SiC, respectively. Also, FT-IR absorption spectroscopy showed a SiC characteristic absorption band at ∼792 cm^− 1.