Abstract
The synthesis of nanoparticles (NP)-reinforced polymers became an attractive approach to developing multifunctional materials used for optoelectronic and energy storage devices. In this report, two different systems of composition, Mg0.75Pb0.25O NP (Mg75), and Mg0.25Pb0.75O NP (Pb75) were prepared by a facile sol-gel method and characterized. Following that, the solution casting method was used to create Mg75/Poly(vinyl chloride)/Poly(vinyl acetate) PV(C/Ac) and Pb75/PV(C/Ac) nanocomposites. The HR-TEM, energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), XRD, and FTIR analyses revealed the high purity of both Mg75 and Pb75 NP and their crystallite sizes were found to be 16 and 20 nm, respectively. Besides the cubic MgO, several phases of lead oxide (β-PbO, α-PbO, Pb3O4) were detected. The Pb, Mg, and O elements were uniformly distributed in Mg75 and Pb75, but the Pb dominated the Mg in the two systems (the atom% ratio of [Mg]:[Pb] in the two systems was 2.71:1 and 1:2.1, respectively). The width and intensity of the XRD and FTIR peaks as well as the surface morphology of the blend were influenced by the Mg75 and Pb75 NP contents. The films displayed high transmittance (70–90%), and the optical band gap (Eg) was reduced from 4.1 eV (pure blend) to 3.6 eV (4.0% Mg75/blend) and 3.7 eV (4.0% Pb75/blend). The corresponding values of the refractive index were 1.86, 3.18, and 2.50, respectively. In addition, the optical conductivity increased significantly after doping. According to the results of the thermo-gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry, the films were stable in the temperature range of 30–250 °C, which is suitable for various practical and space applications without damage. The dielectric constant (ϵ′), loss (ϵ′'), and ac conductivity (σac) were determined in the temperature range (30–100 °C) and frequency range of 102–106 Hz. The ϵ′ values were increased after doping and influenced by the temperature, whereas the values of ϵ′' were small and stable. The improved optical and dielectric properties of the nanocomposites make these materials the best candidates for highly efficient photonic and microelectronic devices.
•Novel Mg–Pb–O/PV(C/Ac) thermoplastic nanocomposites have been prepared via simple chemical routes.•HR-TEM, EDX, XRD, FTIR spectroscopy and FE-SEM have been used to study the structures of the samples.•Various optical constants, dielectric and thermal parameters have been studied.•The films are suitable for highly efficient photonic and microelectronic devices.