Hydroxyl-functional
hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets (OH-BNNSs)
were prepared successfully by ultrasonic treatment, and then homogeneous
dispersions of OH-BNNSs in 1,4-butanediol (BDO) were obtained. Various
techniques were applied to characterize the OH-BNNSs and their hydroxyl
functional groupd. Furthermore, biodegradable poly(butylene succinate)
(PBS)/OH-BNNS nanocomposites were prepared by in situ polymerization
of succinate acid (SA) and BDO containing well-dispersed OH-BNNS.
The nucleating effect of low OH-BNNS loadings on PBS in the PBS/OH-BNNS
nanocomposites was investigated. It is found that OH-BNNSs significantly
improve the melt-crystallization temperature and degree of crystallinity
of PBS during the nonisothermal crystallization process without changing
the crystal structure of PBS. Moreover, the Avrami exponent n calculated for isothermal crystallization increased from
2 to 3 after the addition of 0.05 wt % OH-BNNSs. The nucleation density
of PBS spherulites in the nanocomposites increased dramatically. These
results demonstrate that OH-BNNSs function as an outstanding nucleating
agent of PBS.
Carboxyl end-functionalized poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT-COOH) was grafted chemically with CdSe nanocrystals (NCs) by a phosphine-free method. The particle quality of P3HT-COOH/CdSe nanocomposites was better than that of P3HT/CdSe nanocomposites, which were synthesized using the same method. Nanocrystals with controllable particle size exhibited a wurtzite crystalline structure and showed excellent nanocrystal dispersion in the P3HT-COOH matrix. Photoluminescence (PL) characterization performed on nanocomposites suggested the efficient charge transfer at the P3HT-COOH/CdSe interface. This approach based on the phosphine-free method is not only environmentally friendly but also highly efficient.
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