Ethanol oxidation reaction has been studied in acidic environment over PtPd nanoparticles (NPs) grown on the molybdenum oxide–polypyrrole composite (MOPC) support. The attempt was focused on using reduced Pt loading on non-carbon support for direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC) operated with proton exchange membrane (PEM). As revealed in SEM study, a molybdenum oxide network exists in polypyrrole caging and the presence of metal NPs over the composite matrix is confirmed by TEM analysis. Further physicochemical characterizations such as XRD, EDAX, and XPS are followed in order to understand the surface morphology and composition of the hybrid structure. Electrochemical techniques such as voltammetry, choroamperometry, and impedance spectroscopy along with performance testing of an in-house-fabricated fuel cell are carried out to evaluate the catalytic activity of the materials for DEFC. The reaction products are estimated by ion chromatographic analysis. Considering the results obtained from the above characterization procedures, the best catalytic performance is exhibited by the Pt–Pd (1:1) on MOPC support. A clear intervention of the molybdenum oxide network is strongly advocated in the EOR sequence which increases the propensity of the reaction by making the metallites more energy efficient in terms of harnessing sufficient numbers of electrons than with the carbon support.

BaTiO3 and polypyrrole (ppy)-BaTiO3 hybrid nanocomposites have been synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization method. Microstructure and crystallinity of the hybrids are studied using field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. As prepared BaTiO3 are rod-like, while PPY-BaTiO3 nanocomposites indicate the formation of bulging agglomerates of spherical particles with various sizes (40–50 nm). Dielectric constants at room temperature of the composites have largely enhanced (up to 6000). The hybrid composite shows grain boundary relaxation in the frequency range (42 Hz-5 MHz). Three dimensional (3D) variable range hopping (VRH) with high localization of charge carriers (Mott temperature ≈ 8725658 K) is observed in the temperature dependent conductivity evaluation of composite system. Negative magnetorestance (MR ≈ 4.3%) has been measured at 1 T. The observed MR is explained with the help of forward interference model.

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Polyaniline (PANI)-montmorillonite clay (MMT) hybrid (PANI-MMT) was prepared by mechanical grinding of ANI and MMT in the presence of potassium perdisulphate (KPS) followed by soaking the mass in 0.1 (M) HCI for 24 h. The formation of PANI-MMT hybrid was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic analyses. XRD studies revealed the intercalation of PANI into two-dimensional silicate galleries of MMT HRTEM analyses indicated particle size distribution to be in the range of 40-55 nm. The real part of the dielectric constant reached values as high as 4500 at frequency - 10(2) Hz for a MMT:PANI = 1:1 weight ratio, the value decreasing with increasing frequency up to 25 kHz, and also with increasing MMT loading in the hybrids. This dispersion was indicative of the interfacial space charge polarization (Maxwell Wagner type). Grain boundary resistance and capacitance of the hybrid along with the conductivity-relaxation time for the hybrid at several PANI:MMT weight ratios were evaluated from the complex impedance plot considering the Maxwell-Wagner Two-Layered Model AC conductivity was independent of frequency in the range 0.1-1 kHz and thereafter found to rise in the range 1-25 kHz due to trapped charges. DC conductivity values of the hybrids were lower than the PANI homopolymer.

Poly(N-vinyl carbazole) (PNVC) and polypyrrole (PPY)-montmorillonite (MMT) clay hybrids were prepared by mechanical grinding of the respective monomers with MMT followed by subsequent standard processing methods. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic studies confirmed the inclusion of the polymers in the composites. The morphologies of the hybrids were investigated by transmission electron microscopic techniques, which suggested the formation of intercalated structures. X-ray diffraction analyses indicated the enhancement of 'd001' values in MMT implying intercalation of the polymers into the nano-interlamellar spaces of MMT. The dielectric constants of PNVC-MMT hybrids were improved (60-180) relative to the homopolymer (3-6) in the frequency range 0.1-25 kHz. PPY-MMT hybrid also showed significantly higher values of dielectric constant (2000-4000) relative to the corresponding base polymers. These variations were dependent on the MMT/polymer feed ratio in the frequency range (1-25 kHz). This feature could manifest from the characteristic differences in the interfaces between the grains and grain boundaries of the composites, which control the dielectric properties of the system. Relaxation behavior for the composites was explained by considering the Maxwell-Wagner two-layered dielectric models. The ac conductivity was found to be dependent on frequency in the entire frequency range of study (100 Hz to 25 kHz), which indicated that the composites had few free charges for conduction, and frequency dependent conductivity was due to trapped charges in the grain boundary.