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https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/boms/038/02/0283-0290

PVC; TiO₂; nanocomposite; band gap reduction; thermal stability; mechanical strength.

The present paper reports the fabrication of TiO₂@PVC nanocomposites by incorporating TiO₂ in polyvinyl chloride (PVC) followed by solution casting to prepare TiO₂@PVC nanocomposite thin films. The asprepared TiO₂@PVC nanocomposite films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, optical spectroscopy and mechanical strength analyses. The TiO₂@PVC nanocomposites were found to be thermally and mechanically more stable compared with pure PVC. The anatase TiO₂ in the TiO₂@PVC nanocomposite showed a lower indirect band gap compared with pure TiO₂, which can be attributed to the strain within the nanocomposite, thereby affecting the band-structure of the nanocomposite. Significant enhancement in the mechanical properties of TiO₂@PVC compared with pure PVC was observed with a 10 wt% TiO₂ loading, such as a 50% increase in Young's modulus and almost 100% improvement in the tensile strength.

Mudassir Hasan¹ Arghya Narayan Banerjee² Moonyong Lee¹

1. School of Chemical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 712-749, Republic of Korea
2. School of Mechanical Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongsan 712-749, Republic of Korea

Published

April 2015

Manuscript received

30 April 2014

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