Core–shell magnetic air-stable nanoparticles have
attracted
increasing interest in recent years. Attaining a satisfactory distribution
of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) in polymeric matrices is difficult
due to magnetically induced aggregation, and supporting the MNPs on
a nonmagnetic core–shell is a well-established strategy. In
order to obtain magnetically active polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites
by melt mixing, the thermal reduction of graphene oxides (TrGO) at
two different temperatures (600 and 1000 °C) was carried out,
and, subsequently, metallic nanoparticles (Co or Ni) were dispersed
on them. The XRD patterns of the nanoparticles show the characteristic
peaks of the graphene, Co, and Ni nanoparticles, where the estimated
sizes of Ni and Co were 3.59 and 4.25 nm, respectively. The Raman
spectroscopy presents typical D and G bands of graphene materials
as well as the corresponding peaks of Ni and Co nanoparticles. Elemental
and surface area studies show that the carbon content and surface
area increase with thermal reduction, as expected, following a reduction
in the surface area by the support of MNPs. Atomic absorption spectroscopy
demonstrates about 9–12 wt % metallic nanoparticles supported
on the TrGO surface, showing that the reduction of GO at two different
temperatures has no significant effect on the support of metallic
nanoparticles. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy shows
that the addition of a filler does not alter the chemical structure
of the polymer. Scanning electron microscopy of the fracture interface
of the samples demonstrates consistent dispersion of the filler in
the polymer. The TGA analysis shows that, with the incorporation of
the filler, the initial (T
onset) and maximum
(T
max) degradation temperatures of the
PP nanocomposites increase up to 34 and 19 °C, respectively.
The DSC results present an improvement in the crystallization temperature
and percent crystallinity. The filler addition slightly enhances the
elastic modulus of the nanocomposites. The results of the water contact
angle confirm that the prepared nanocomposites are hydrophilic. Importantly,
the diamagnetic matrix is transformed into a ferromagnetic one with
the addition of the magnetic filler.