Well-defined magnetic separable, hollow spherical Fe 3 O 4 /TiO 2 hybrid photocatalysts were successfully prepared through a poly(styrene-acrylic acid) (PSA) template method. This bifunctional product was characterized in terms of the particle size, surface morphology, chemical composition, and magnetic properties using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) patterns. The M-H hysteresis loop for Fe 3 O 4 /TiO 2 hollow spheres indicates that the composite spheres show superparamagnetic characteristics at room temperature. These magnetic TiO 2 composites with hollow nature exhibit good photocatalytic activity under UV light irradiation and can be recycled six times by magnetic separation without major loss of activity. This method can be further applied to synthesize other bifunctional hollow spheres, such as Fe 3 O 4 /SnO 2 and Fe 3 O 4 /CdS.

One-step synthesis of carbon-encapsulated Fe(3)O(4) core/shell composites is reported. The Fe(3)O(4) cores were formed via the reduction of Fe(3+) by glucose under alkaline conditions obtained by the decomposition of urea. The amorphous carbon shells were carbonized from glucose. A possible formation mechanism for the Fe(3)O(4)@C composite was discussed. In order to characterize these Fe(3)O(4)@C core-shell composites, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) magnetometer were employed to characterize the sample obtained using the above method.

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Polypropylene/montmorillonite (MMT) nanocomposites were prepared by a novel method, with pristine MMT with a surfactant. This study showed that the present of maleic acid modified polypropylene and the ratio of the surfactant to MMT had an influence on the dispersion of MMT in the hybrids. A density functional theory and a self‐consistent field were used to illuminate the results. We studied the synergy between MMT and an intumescent flame retardant (IFR) and found that there was a optimal ratio of MMT to IFR. In addition, the mechanisms of melt intercalation and synergism between MMT and IFR were examined.